Star Wars Mandalorian Commando: Warrior's Quest
by Raw Sewage Writings
Summary: With the radical reformation of the Galactic Empire, defectees Sev and his new allie, an Alpha ARC known as Keilbourn, pursue a new life, embracing the roots of the culture they were modeled after. However they find that their actions could compromise the very family that they earned their way into...


Star Wars

Mandalorian Commando

Warrior's Quest

Chapter 01

Not a wink of sleep ever settled over him. Though his body was physically exhausted, Sev's mind was rampant. Too much had happened and all too fast. As a gifted marksman, trained to be an elite Commando in the Grand Army of the Republic, he prized himself of analyzing his situations, quickly adapting, and then executing with military precision. For the past half hour, all he had done was try to process his situation, though no matter what he did or whatever solution he came to, nothing sat right with him. Just yesterday, he'd woken up on the jungle floors of Kashyyyk's lower levels known as the Shadow Lands. He'd struggled back up to civilization only to find the Republic was no longer what it once was. What was worse, Sev was told he would never again see his pod-brothers, his team of origin, Delta Squad. As a unit of four, they'd grown together, trained together, fought and bled together. He missed them. He even found himself longing to hear one of Scorch's stupid jokes again. Knowing they would never be together again, made him truly feel alone; and he was. Sev laid on the bunk in the rather roomy dorm on the port dormitory onboard a Dynamic-class freighter. The craft had been a junker from the old days of the Republic until later found and restored. The bite of the cold nipped away at him as he lay motionless on his back wearing only the black body glove he wore under his Katarn armor. Finally abandoning the attempt of sleep, Sev rolled to his side and swung his legs over the edge. He rubbed his eyes as he sighed. He stood up, straightening his back with a stretch before stepping out of the cabin. The door opened allowing the Commando into the narrow hall which led into the main hold. He turned left and made his way past the communications center into the cockpit. Sev strode through the circular entry to find Keilbourn seated in the front chair, thoughtfully watching the swirl of hyperspace through his window from behind the glowing, humming control terminals. Upon entering, Sev slumped down on one of the three other available chairs. Keilbourn, a former ARC Trooper of the Republic swiveled his chair to face Sev. Sev eyed him closely. Though just a few hours ago, Keilbourn had saved Sev from misguided yet deadly Clone Troopers, Sev found it hard to fully accept him. The Commando wasn't exactly social and very short in his talk and manner.

"Just get up," Keilbourn asked. His tone was friendly, trying to convince the hardened Commando in such a way. Sev merely shook his head.

"Couldn't sleep," he said simply. Keilbourn watched him carefully. He didn't take much offense to Sev's curtness to him. In many ways, he sympathized with the former Delta. Keilbourn himself had witnessed what the loss of Sev had done to the Squad of Commandos. He had a slight history with the Commandos as his ARC training at times overlapped with the Commandos' training. Sev shivered slightly, though he tried to hide it.

"Cold?"

"Very," Sev replied. Keilbourn's mouth cracked into a grin.

"I've got some extra clothes in the storage shelf in the hold."

"Civilian dress?" Sev asked in disgust. Keilbourn laughed at the Commando's manner of non military standards.

"I've done quite a few covert operations. Can't exactly blend in wearing shiny-white," he said. Sev grinned slightly. He turned away peering out into space, allowing the awkward silence to spread for a good solid minute.

"So how do you know Vau?" Sev finally asked. The Commando had referred to his trainer. The Mandalorian warrior, Walon Vau was one of the few Mandalorians recruited to train the Clones of the Special Operations branch of the GAR.

"I would train with him from time to time. In fact," the ARC paused as he looked at Sev smugly. "I knew you too." Sev's face wiped of all traces of his hardened background as surprise swept over him.

"How so?" he asked defensively. Keilbourn's grin spread from ear to ear as he chuckled too softly.

"It was a CQC exercise in one of those mazes. I knocked you down on your sheb." Sev's face hardened again.

"Lucky hit, you got me from behind," Sev grumbled as his eyes narrowed. Keilbourn continued to laugh.

"Whatever you say," he said. A small flashing light emitted on his controls. Keilbourn directed his focus to the display to his left. "We're almost to Dxun," he announced. Keilbourn frowned as he turned again to face Sev. "I've been thinking," he said.

"What is it?" Sev asked as he watched the former ARC. Keilbourn opened his mouth and thought for a second before speaking.

"Follow me," he said as he stood up from his chair and walked out of the cockpit. Sev frowned as he too rose stepped through the circular entry and past the communications center. As he strode into the main hold and up to the glowing table in the center of the area, he spoke. "Before we head down to Dxun, I'd like to know for myself; get a grasp of what's really happening." Sev stood just past the entry with his arms folded and pondered Keilbourn's logic. Nothing bad ever came out of trying to get a little information before heading off into a world unknown to them. Sev nodded in agreement.

"So what'd you have in mind?" Keilbourn keyed in the coordinates of Dxun into the navicomputer installed into the holo-table. Within seconds, a large projection of Dxun hovered above the glowing panels of the table. The display zoomed out of the full view of the moon of Dxun and provided them with a view of a cluster of planets. In the center of the blue glowing projection, was the small moon. Keilbourn pointed to a point just to the right of Dxun in the midst of the holographic projection.

"We're here. I think we should find a planet where we can land and gather a little intel." Sev nodded.

"We'd have to find a CIS controlled system, we don't want to risk getting recognized," the former Commando observed.

"Yeah but then we risk faulty intel about the Republic. We need to go somewhere in the Republic."

"That is risky," Sev said.

"Nothing a couple of Spec Ops Clones can't handle," Keilbourn mused. Keilbourn again studied the large hovering projection. "Onderon is closest to Dxun," he observed. Sev too studied the projection. He stepped up to the table and scanned the projection carefully with his dark eyes.

"True but we should probably go more distant. If it gets hot, hiding to close may cause trouble." Keilbourn nodded at his logic. As he studied the map, he lightly touched the image of many planets, causing a small projection of text to appear next to the planet's image. After seconds of studying the map and the brief background of each planet, Sev pointed at one with his finger just north of their position.

"Contruum?" he inquired. Sev merely motioned with his eyes at the projection. Keilbourn took a closer look at the planet and read out loud the briefing of the planet. "Canyons, large oceans; mostly known for its Borium mines and shipyards. No sentient native species and currently, independent." Keilbourn frowned as he looked back up at Sev. "I thought we were looking for Republic systems?"

"Independent is better. There'll be information on the Republic without their presence." Keilbourn looked away again.

"Can't choose anywhere closer?" he mused. He walked past Se with a grin as he stepped back into the cockpit to enter the correct coordinates, redirecting their course.

Chapter 02

The Dynamic-class Freighter soared down through the sparse layer of bright clouds, breaking into the light blue atmosphere of Contruum. Far below, the green tinge of the ocean spread as far as the eye could see. The ship, still miles above ground, flew on a direct course to the large canyon formation at the edge of the sea. The thrusters burned with a red flame from the twin boosters in the rear. Within minutes, the freighter located a large community established on the floor of the canyon. Above on the plateau a massive network and collection of gargantuan starships of various purpose and manufacture were docked. All about most of the vast crafts, tiny flashes came from the arc welders from the large machines manned by workers to repair or restore the crafts for voyages. Contruum was one of the very few planets that still hosted in atmosphere shipyards. Onboard behind the control terminals in the cockpit, Keilbourn received docking instructions from Contruum's customs. He banked the ship high above the shipyard before descending into the vast crack of the canyon. Just under the edge of the plateau, was a long strip of docking bays for smaller crafts. As instructed, Keilbourn directed his ship to the western wall of the canyon and into one of the many empty docking bays. He lowered the landing gear and secured the landing procedures. Lucky for him, it was just large enough to fit his Dynamic-class Freighter, a rather good sized ship. The floor of the hanger then rotated, turning the ship around to face the airlock. After five minutes of lying dormant, the boarding ramp located under the blocky extension of the starboard side lowered with a hiss as the hydraulic column extended fully. From the top of the ramp, Sev clomped down uncomfortably, stepping into the rock walled hanger. He looked at his attire with dread on his face. The boots he wore seemed too loose, as the cargo pants felt rather baggy as they hung off his waist. The jacket too felt loose over the cloth tunic that draped over his broad shoulders. The spacer clothes to a real voyageur were comfortable attire that could easily be worn for either weeks or months at a time. However, to a military veteran, a Commando none less; accustomed to the form fitting military uniforms, the clothes were baggy and clumsy looking. Sev hated having to wear the disguise. Keilbourn on the other hand, wearing attire to the same affect, was completely content with the civilian dress. He stepped down from the ramp with a grin on his face. He stepped up to Sev's side and looked out of the airlock to the hangers across the canyon.

"I feel ridiculous," Sev sulked as he continued to scrutinize his clothes. Keilbourn laughed as he held his hand out in front of the Commando. Loosely gripped, was a half mask and goggles with tinted lenses under an old poorly kept blaster pistol.

"Here brother," he said. Sev accepted them, but not before shooting a quizzical stare at the former ARC. Keilbourn looked over at him. "We're gonna have to start getting used to that, it's our best alibi," he explained. This idea was bizarre to Sev. As far as he was concerned, he had three brothers, though neither of them was there. After a while of attempting to accept the idea, he nodded.

"Okay, we're twins," he paused and thought. "Twins from where?" he inquired.

"Dantooine was my constant on my ops," Keilbourn replied as he too slid on his mask and placed the goggles on his forehead.

"I'll buy that. Since we don't look like Mandalorians," Sev added grumpily as he tucked his blaster pistol in the back of his cargo pants. Sev started down to the exit while Keilbourn followed, chuckling over Sev's misery. The exit led them into a narrow passage behind the procession of hangers. In the center of the rock passage was a metal elevator built into the wall. The two boarded it, quickly then followed by another spacer. The Mon Calamari pilot stood in between the clones, completely oblivious of their likeness. His bulbous eyes stared straight at the metal doors, now sealed. As the elevator dropped, a silence fell inside the lift. "So what's our names?" Sev suddenly blurt out. Keilbourn shot a nasty look at him, darting his eyes from the pilot back to the Commando. The Mon Calamari pilot seemed not to notice anything. Finally the lift reached the bottom level. The amphibious pilot stepped out first. After a good distance had been made between them, the two clones stepped out onto the canyon floor. The city built between the high rock walls seemed cramped into a narrow strip of buildings and streets. Sev and Keilbourn continued to walk down the sidewalk amongst various other spacers. "So about the names?" Sev asked again.

"I think our own should be fine, just be careful around Republic forces." Sev nodded, satisfied with the former ARC's answer.

"Where are we headed?" Sev asked as he looked around the city.

"Somewhere we can blend in," Keilbourn said as he stopped on the street corner.

"A cantina," Sev interjected. He indicated the short, flat building with an open door. A mist seemed to seep from the entrance where darkness shrouded a view inside. Above the entrance a green neon sign blared, flashing into different dialects. "Molojad," he announced. Keilbourn was about to step on the road to cross the street but was stopped by his companion. Sev quickly clasped Keilbourn's chest and yanked him onto the walkway.

"What?" Keilbourn demanded.

"Heads up," Sev mumbled softly. Keilbourn looked back out over the street. Emerging from the corner around the Molojad were four white armored Clone Troopers stepping boldly with their DC-15As straddled in their arms. Their patrol led them down the walkway away from the cantina. "Careful," Sev muttered as they quickly crossed the street and slumped into misty, mysterious darkness of Molojad. The two of them walked casually around a bend which opened to the large, flat, crowded cantina. In the far back across from the door, the bar stretched from wall to wall. To their surprise, it was quiet with very few sounds to be heard over the muffled back track of the city behind them. Among the few sounds however, was a grinding, haunting voice; with a tiny hint of familiarity. Every eye in the cantina was glued to the roof in the center of the room. A four way holograph projector had been installed for the patron's entertainment. Though today, no Pod Race was being shown or even a dramatic program of intergalactic storytelling; instead what filled the large flat projections was a live broadcast of a disturbing nature. The projection was filled with an image of a man draped in heavy maroon robes. His hands were pale and stricken with age. Had it not been for the recognizable appearances of the Vice Chancellor, Mas Amedda on the robed figures left and the Senior Administrative Aide, Sly Moore standing like a ghost at his right, Sev would never have recognized Chancellor Palpatine. The pedestal on which they stood towered in the midst of the chamber of the Galactic Senate. The Chancellor appeared nothing like what the two Clones had remembered. From behind a partially concealing hood, ominous yellow eyes glowed in the midst of a sagged, sickening grey face. Entranced by the grotesque sight, Sev and Keilbourn shuffled against the wall to find a less distracting place to watch.

"…there were those who would set us against one another, and we took up arms to defend our way of life against the Separatists. In so doing, we never suspected that the greatest threat came from within." Sev glanced over at the former ARC as they seated themselves down at a small round table.

"Where's he going with this?"

"Shush," Keilbourn shot. Sev returned his focus to the speech.

"The Jedi hoped to unleash their destructive power against the Republic by assassinating the head of government and usurping control of the clone army."

"No they didn't," Keilbourn muttered. Immediately his thoughts recalled the image of a Jedi standing atop the deck of a large A6 Juggernaut. Through the scope of his sniper blaster rifle, Keilbourn witnessed this innocent Jedi Master get blown away by a tank manned by the traitorous Clones. The memory quickly passed as Chancellor Palpatine's next words astonished him, capturing his attention again.

"The war is over. The Separatists have been defeated…" Throughout the duration of the address, the attending members of the Galactic Senate dispersed applause between the Chancellor's haunting words. Both Sev and Keilbourn gaped in shock. Again, Keilbourn's mind drifted away to the events of just the day before; hundreds of thousands of Battle Droids storming the beaches of Kashyyyk. To Sev however, the initial shock came from a feeling he found hard to explain. He was beginning to detach himself from the Republic altogether, however a certain feeling still lingered. The both of them, the entire Clone Army for that matter, had been bred for a single purpose. The war that had slowly eased into play before finally having its bloody hold over the galaxy was the exact reason for his existence. Now that he was told it was over, no feeling of resolve came over him, just a confused longing. Now that he had none, he found himself needing a purpose. "In order to ensure our security and continuing stability, the Republic will be reorganized into the first Galactic Empire, for a safe and secure society…" The applause to follow was the most powerful than any before. Slowly Sev and Keilbourn shook their heads as Chancellor Palpatine continued to ramble about the new Empire. "Under the Empire's New Order, our most cherished beliefs will be safeguarded. We will defend our ideals by force of arms. We will give no ground to our enemies and will stand together against attacks from within or without. Let the enemies of the Empire take heed: those who challenge Imperial resolve will be crushed." The Chancellor's glowing yellow eyes seemed to burn into Sev's as he watched. "Imperial citizens must do their part. Join our grand star fleet. Become the eyes of the Empire by reporting suspected insurrectionists." The two Clones glanced at each other in a disturbed amazement.

"What does that mean exactly?" Sev questioned in a low voice. Keilbourn looked at him again with eyes full of grief.

"Means we're officially enemies of the state."

"The clone troopers, now proudly wearing the name of Imperial Stormtroopers, have tackled the dangerous work of fighting our enemies on the front lines. Many have died in their devotion to the Empire. Imperial citizens would do well to remember their example." Immediately Sev's thoughts directed to his brothers, his former Squad. The idea that officially their directive was now to hunt him down as the New Empire's Stormtroopers, made him sick; another reason for him to remove himself from the Republic.

"I can't watch anymore," Sev said darkly. Keilbourn sensed the pain that edged his voice.

"Neither can I, Brother," he said as they both turned away. Within another minute, the speech was over with the broadcast consumed by the mounting thunder of applause. The patrons of the Cantina seemed fazed by the decree of the New Order. Murmurs loomed in the air of the cantina as conversation again erupted. A Twi'lek woman wearing a skimpy uniform approached the two of them as they sat quietly at the small table.

"Galactic Empire pfft!" she scoffed. "You ask me it's nothing more than an excuse of tyranny," she added with a roll of her eyes. "What can I do for you gentlemen," she asked with a sudden air of sweetness. Keilbourn looked to Sev, who looked back at him before hiding his gaze gloomily down to the table.

"You got ale?" Keilbourn inquired smoothly.

"Well you know I do, but you gotta tell me what kind," the Twi'lek waitress replied playfully. Keilbourn grinned from behind his mask.

"Surprise us then," he said. The Twil'ek gave him a devious grin before turning away, her head tails swayed slightly as she walked away. Sev's gaze carried back up from the table intending for the sight of the Twi'lek to distract him from his solemn, bitter feelings. Not having the desired affect for the former Commando, Sev looked back at his companion.

"We drinking to something?"

"Why not?" he replied. "Feirfek, we've got plenty to drink too." Sev nodded then sighed.

"Sergeant Vau's right," he said.

"In what way?"

"The Republic," Sev spat. "I want out." Keilbourn exhaled through his nostrils loudly.

"I know," he said softly. "It's not the Republic anymore. It's not what I swore to defend."

"It's become what we've sworn to defend it against," the former Commando said through grit teeth. "Frag the Empire," Sev spat again. The Twi'lek waitress then returned. In her hand, a tray held two small, empty glasses and a bottle. Gently she placed the two glasses in front of the Clones, then took the bottle and poured small amounts into the glasses. As the green beverage poured into their cups, the Twi'lek giggled.

"A drink of my homeland," she mused. "Enjoy." While giggling some more, she turned away and walked about the cantina. Sev eyed the glowing green drink which fizzed ever so slightly. With a shrug he grabbed the glass and lowered the mask to below his chin.

"I wouldn't drink that if I were you," Keilbourn warned with a challenging grin.

"You don't think I can handle my ale?" Keilbourn barked with laughter.

"First of all, I'm sure you could handle that stuff back at the barracks, and second, that's no ale." Sev looked again at the glass which he held in his hand. "That my Brother is Twi'lek Liquor, and it's a lot…more," Keilbourn paused. Sev only eyed the former ARC down as a smirk barely edged on his mouth.

"Well Brother," Sev shot back. "You still got a lot to learn about me." With another challenging smile, Keilbourn too lowered his mask and grabbed the glass. "What're we drinking to?" Sev asked solemnly. Keilbourn looked at the glass again.

"To our comrades," Keilbourn offered. Sev shook his head as he peered into the glass.

"To our fallen brothers," he replied. Keilbourn nodded.

"And the innocent victims by which they fell." Sev looked from the glass into the eyes of his companion. As they stared at each other, they felt the sentiment surround them.

Chapter 03

Before stepping out of the mist and back onto the street, Sev leaned through the exit and scanned. After nodding his head at his companion, both he and Keilbourn strode out with their masks in place once again.

"To Dxun?" Sev muttered.

"To Dxun," Keilbourn replied.

"Do we need to get anything; Weapons, supplies, credits?"

"Got us covered. You wouldn't think I'd have gone on covert ops without my own personal armory would you," Keilbourn scoffed.

"Yeah about that," Sev slurred. The Twi'lek drink was far more potent than he could have imagined. "Your ship, aint she registered?" Keilbourn looked at his companion with insult written on his face.

"Do I look stupid?" Sev looked the former ARC up and down, taking in the sloppy civilian dress.

"Ask me that again," Sev mused. Suddenly the distinct hum of a LAAT flying close over the low city roared in their ears. Their paranoia caused the Clones to jump and spin into cover in an alley-way. As they were about to step back into the street, a patrol of seven newly dubbed 'Stormtroopers' charged down the road.

"Go, go, down that alley!" one hollered. Instinctively, the both of them reached for their concealed blasters. As the Troopers continued down the road, one of the Troopers stopped and confronted the spacers.

"You two!" he demanded. Sev immediately considered the trouble of speaking in the same cloned voice as their enemy. "A Jedi ran down this way did you see it?" Sev panicked, considering just shooting the Trooper. Before he drew his blaster however, Keilbourn stepped forward.

"Can't say I did, sorry mate," the former ARC growled in a grisly disguised voice. The Trooper lingered for another moment; surveying Sev from behind his helmet.

"Stay out of our way," he barked before turning and marching down the street after his comrades. After a second passed, Sev sighed in relief.

"Feirfek," the former Commando swore. "Did you see his rank? Could you imagine if that little chizk private would have known who we are, he'd been kissing our shebs," Sev growled angrily.

"They're hunting a Jedi," Keilbourn muttered thoughtfully. Sev looked at him and frowned.

"Should we do something?" Keilbourn looked back at him.

"Do we want that kind of attention?" he asked.

"Well, I wouldn't mind snapping his neck," Sev mused darkly.

CT-54387 was hot on the trail, along with the other six of his platoon. Every Clone of the GAR was aware and mostly excited for the reformation. The Empire seemed like a step up, and meant more exciting work for him. As a result of the New Order, the Chancellor, now under the title of Emperor Palpatine, had quickly deployed his Stormtroopers all over the galaxy to crucial strategic locations. Contruum was one of them. The Emperor wanted claim over the planet's supply of Borium mines. CT-54387 was there as part of the policing initiative. When his patrol got the word of a Jedi seeking refuge in the canyon city just clicks away, they mobilized and chased the Jedi from one end of the canyon nearly to the other.

"87, take the right flank, we'll cut it off!" his comrade called out. CT-87 and two others broke from the initial patrol and ran around the building on the right flank. They would take the wide bend and intersect the Jedi from the rear while the others caught up. The tree made the sprint nearing in on the convergence point. With their DC-15As leveled, they snapped around the corner with gins on their faces that quickly dropped away. Where the Jedi was supposed to be and the rest of his patrol was only a dark, silent dead end.

"What the-," CT-87 had managed to say before getting shot down by a blaster to the head. The other two Clones fired their rifles blindly into the dark spot where the glow of the single bolt had illuminated the outline of a person. However in the bursts of blaster bolts, the outline had vanished. The other two troopers ceased firing and glanced to each other quizzically. Suddenly, an arm wrapped around the neck of one of the Troopers, as he silently struggled from the lack of air, he fired his rifle haphazardly. The figure holding the helpless Trooper captive then seized the blaster and fired a single shot center mass at the other Trooper. In a clutter of armor, he fell dead, followed by a sudden snap and thump as a second body dropped. The figure slunk back into the shadows. Suddenly from around the corner, a robed, concealed individual panting and heaving for breath, nearly crashed into the wall. As it noticed the fallen bodies of three Clone Troopers, it hesitated. Seconds later, the clamber of footsteps erupted around the corner, carrying with them the other four Troopers of the patrol. The lead Trooper swore as he slowly approached the Jedi with his blaster leveled.

"You'll pay for that, Scum," he growled. Out of nowhere a blaster went off and an orange bolt soared and killed the Trooper. As he dropped, the two flanking Troopers were suddenly seized by hidden figures. In an impressive display of combat, each was quickly and covertly subdued. The third turned around on his heel, shaking as he leveled his DC-15A. As the broken Clones were tossed aside by their attackers, one of the figures grasped the blaster's extended barrel. In a swift move, the blaster was seized and swung hard on the head of the Trooper. He went down hard, crumpled into a ball as the attacker then shot him. The Jedi looked out from its state of shock to just in time catch a glimpse of one of the fallen Clones quickly leveling his sidearm. With a wave of the hand, the blaster flew from his grip. The Clone's outcry caught the figures' attention. With his blaster pistol, Sev fired a single shot to the Troopers head. With a thud, the helmeted head dropped; smoke softly rising from the scorch mark. Keilbourn dropped the DC-15A and slowly approached the Jedi.

"You hurt?" he asked in his natural yet rasped voice.

"No," the Jedi replied. To the former ARC's astonishment, the voice was young. At a second glance, the both of them realized just how young this Jedi was. Curled in a ball of shock, it looked even smaller. With small, soft, light green hands, the hood of its robe was removed to reveal a young, Mirialan girl; no older than thirteen. Her face was equally green, draped by dark black hair. Her brown eyes looked up into Keilbourn's equally brown eyes. As his was a reflection of the pain of war, hers reflected the agony and torment of loss. Sev looked again closer at the girl.

"Feirfek now they're killing kids!" he growled as he kicked one of the fallen, armored bodies. While crouched next to the Jedi, Keilbourn lowered the mask under his jaw. Her eyes suddenly grew with hate.

"Get away from me!" she cried.

"No, no," Keilbourn said softly. "We're not going to hurt you," he consoled, grasping her by the shoulders. Sev too lowered his mask and placed his goggles on his forehead.

"We're not like them." Sev added with another kick at the dead body.

"Is there anymore we can do for you," Keilbourn asked in a rush as he helped lift the girl to her feet. Still with a face of confusion, she shook her head.

"No. Thank you, but you've done quite enough." Quickly she raised her hood over her black hair and turned to depart. Before sprinting away she turned back to her rescuers again. "May the Force be with you," she called out. With a spin on her heels, she was gone. Watching after her Sev sighed.

"You know she won't survive on her own," Sev said grimly. Keilbourn continued to watch her as she ran away. With bitterness, he replied.

"I know."

Chapter 04

As the Dynamic-class Freighter drifted through the shield and out of the canyon's floor, Sev pondered more about their brief yet interesting time on Contruum. The ship accelerated out over the brown and red canyon. At one point, they'd nearly missed ramming into a LAAT inbound to the planet. Once back in space, Keilbourn readied the hyperdrive. Sev seated himself in the back of the cockpit with Keilbourn at the helm. The Commando reflected on the actions of his companion. Sev was gaining a certain respect for the former ARC. His compassion he showed to the Jedi was to the least, uncharacteristic of the Commando; he almost envied Keilbourn.

"Ready to make the jump," Keilbourn announced as he sequenced the controls; inputting the coordinates into the console. Suddenly a bleep sounded from the radar console. Keilbourn turned to eye the display as Sev leaned in for a closer look. "Not good," Keilbourn growled.

"What?" Sev asked.

"There's a Republic ship coming around orbit. If they notice us then we're done for."

"Well then make the jump," Sev barked. Keilbourn went back to the controls.

"Feirfek," he swore. "The hyperdrive is still warming up."

"How long?" Sev asked.

"Just a minute."

"Feirfek that's too long," Sev growled. He spun away and made his way to the main hold of the ship. As he passed the communications center, the display lit up and beeped.

"Keilbourn they're hailing us," Sev called back into the cockpit.

"Oh chizk," he exclaimed as he jumped from his seat. He clambered to the coms center and surveyed the screen. After flipping a switch, a voice of a Republic commander sounded through the grille of the speaker.

"Unidentified freighter, remain where you are as we dispatch a shuttle to board your ship. Fail to respond and we will shoot you down." Sev looked at Keilbourn with concern. He then turned back into the cockpit and peered through the transparisteel window.

"Blast! They're on their way," he shouted back. Keilbourn scrambled back in the cockpit and plopped into his seat. He checked his display again, in a furious rush.

"Not if they can't catch us," Keilbourn muttered. He grasped the throttle tightly, punching it forward. As the handle slid forward, Sev prepared for the throw of the hyperdrive. The whine of the engines built before suddenly dying away. The freighter lurched forward violently, shaking Keilbourn in his seat and nearly throwing Sev into the controls. The craft however still in full acceleration was still in normal space. "Oh feirfek not again," Keilbourn groaned. Sev shot a nasty look at him.

"Again?" he exclaimed. The former ARC jumped from his seat and ran down the hall.

"Keep tabs on the radar," he shouted back as he ran pass the navicomputer and down the hall to the rear of the ship. Keilbourn quickly swiped his hand over the sensor, making the door open. With a hiss, it slid apart and Keilbourn squeezed through and into the whirring whine and overwhelming hum of the engineering room. The turbines up against the walls hummed loudly as a red light flashed from the ceiling. "So what's wrong then," he muttered to himself. Keilbourn squatted next to the hyperdrive which was installed in the rear.

"Any luck yet?" Sev called out as he approached the engineering room.

"No." Suddenly the ship shook again by the bang from the explosion which hit the starboard side. Keilbourn looked back to his companion. "Get back to the cockpit and tell me how the shields are holding up," he shouted over the pestering hum and whine. Sev leapt back down the halls to the bow of the freighter. He checked the blue, glowing display and found the shields were stable. Sev then peered out the side window to the cockpit to find more bolts of torpedo blasts sailing at them along with a landing craft. He leapt out of the cockpit and raced back to the engineering room.

"Shields are good for now. But we're gonna have company." More blasts erupted on the hull of the ship.

"Man the turret, keep them busy," Keilbourn shouted as he banged on the side of the massive hunk of machinery. Sev looked back down the hall to find that just pass the intersection to find the entrance to the turret tower.

"I'm on it," Sev barked back. He reached the hatch and waved it open over the sensor. The door opened revealing a seat. Sev observed the bizarre sight before planting down onto the black leather. Once seated, the door closed and the chair shot up the shaft a full seven feet. The chair then spun around to face the throttles and 360 swivel view screen. He thumbed the screen on. In seconds, the space around him was viewed on the screen. Sev sneered as he swiveled his chair, which adjusted the targeting and direction of the twin turbolasers equipped above him. The inside of the turret tower was slightly claustrophobic as the only light was the tiny glows of the controls and the blue aura which shined on his face. Sev swiveled the turrets to the stern of the freighter to view the inbound landing craft. The former Commando squeezed the throttle firing the fiery red bolts. Unable to bank away from the shots, the turbolaser blasted away the craft. The explosion popped in space in a fire ball. Debris rained about the freighter, still in full speed acceleration. Sev swiveled again, now focusing his aim on the large Venator-class Star Destroyer. By switching on a function to the offensive network, the starboard and port side turrets redirected to the starship. "Eat laser, slime!" He squeezed the throttle firing away at the starship. Sev locked the lasers in place to swivel around, scanning the space around them. Everything seemed fine to the former Commando, not another hostile in sight. The lasers hit the vast starship, though seemed to accomplish nothing. The Freighter was no match against the deadly armament of the starship. Sev lowered the seat back to the deck of the ship and exited the turret tower. He strode back to the engineering room to find Keilbourn still tinkering with the hyperdrive. Another cascade of blasts hit the freighter, nearly throwing the Commando off his feet. "How about now?" Sev inquired over the racket of the engines.

"We're not going to be able to take much punishment," Keilbourn shouted as another hail of laser fire pounded the hull. To their shock, a loud explosion thundered just above their heads. "There goes our shields," he said. Sev took off again sprinting to the bow and into the cockpit. As he approached the consol, the radar display bleeped madly.

"Oh chizk," he exclaimed. Through the ripples of hyperspace, suddenly the vast form of another Venator-class Star Destroyer popped into view. Sev quickly planted into the pilot's seat, deactivating the auto pilot and overriding the turret system. He grabbed the throttle of the ship, banking sharply to the left. Far back in the engineering room, Keilbourn struggled to reconnect a jumble of wires.

"Sev you break my ship and I'll shoot you," the former ARC grumbled under his breath. The other Republic starship fired a barrage of laserfire at the small freighter, which maneuvered away. As Sev sent the ship into corkscrews under the hull of the cruiser, Keilbourn again rolled his eyes, struggling not to flop around in the engineering room.

"Ha!" Sev exclaimed. "That'd given Fixer a run for his money." Again, the freighter took more shots from the turbolasers. The freighter shook violently again, following a sudden flicker of the lights. From the display of the exterior hull, Sev saw many damaged spots on the top. Then another blast erupted at the rear. A loud beeping and red flash emitted on the display on one of the engines. Keilbourn still in the engineering room saw the turbine of the left engine starting to sizzle.

"No, no, no!" he cried out as he jumped from the floor next to the hyperdrive. He ran up to the turbine, looking it over with panic. "Oh no you don't," he growled as he kicked the machine. Suddenly the lights on the turbine popped back on, and the machine whirred to a high drone. The next Keilbourn knew he was thrown onto his face by the force of hyper acceleration. The hyperdrive too joined the chorus of humming machinery. The entire engineering room seemed to pressurize by the volume of noise. Finally Keilbourn jumped to his feet and made his way down the halls. Sev was already in the main hold observing the projection of a planet on the navicomputer. "Well, it worked," Keilbourn mused.

"Kinda," Sev murmured. "The fluctuation of power scrambled the consol." Keilbourn eyed him suspiciously. "We've made a blind jump," Sev said weakly. Keilbourn looked over to the projection.

"Great, Dathomir."

Chapter 05

By reflecting on one of the Ops Keilbourn had participated in on the, the former ARC had no love for the mountainous, misty stretches of wasteland. As soon as he could, he rushed to the cockpit and manned the controls. He killed the hyperdrive, watching as the swirl of stars suddenly steadied to the magnificent view of space and the dark orange of Dathomir loomed in the window. As Keilbourn attempted to bank away, the freighter then sputtered, shaking violently. Sev slunk into the cockpit, leaning on one of the rear chairs.

"Crap! Our systems are failing. Engines are down, navigation is down."

"In other words, strap in," Sev replied as he swiveled his seat and plopped into place. Keilbourn fought with the controls, yet failed to stabilize the freighter. Through the window, Sev watched as the bow of the freighter burst into flames. The entire ship shook violently as it dropped through the atmosphere of the planet. All around, flames engulfed the ship, licking up the transparisteel window. Sev looked out the side and the hull burn red hot, nearly peeling away from the intense heat. "What's stopping us from burning up?" Sev growled over the alarms and roar of the fall.

"Special coating on the hull," Keilbourn replied mindlessly as he struggled. He gritted his teeth as he fought the controls. The intense heat caused Sev to sweat. Finally the heat lessened as the freighter broke through the atmosphere. The entire sky was dark and filled with a torrent of rain. The drop continued to shake the craft. Keilbourn managed to keep it stable with the underside repulsors. He struggled to level out the ship and direct it away from the mountains far below. Keilbourn looked to the ship status display in surprise.

"Engines are back," he exclaimed. The former ARC gunned the thruster around, trying to find a suitable area for an emergency landing. "They aint gonna hold for another trip though," he muttered in annoyance.

"How about there?" Sev advised as he pointed out the window. Keilbourn saw the open plain at the foot hills of the mountains.

"That'll do," Keilbourn said. He banked into a landing pattern, preparing the landing gear. Still in a rather fast descent, Keilbourn made sure to flare the freighter before touching down on the tall grass. The loud whirr of the engines died away as Keilbourn disengaged the few systems which still responded. Sev looked around the cockpit again.

"Nice ship," he muttered sarcastically.

"Oh shut it!" Keilbourn snapped, as he finished the landing sequencing. As he stood up from his chair, Sev followed him out into the main hold then, took the left corridor. The lights in the hall flickered violently. As he followed the former ACR around the bend, Keilbourn approached a door and waved it open. "Dathomir is one hostile wasteland," he said as they entered into the freighter's cargo hold. "We're going to have to take extra precaution." Up against the adjacent wall from the door was a rack which stretched down to the inventory computer. The former ARC never used the terminal as he never used the ship for cargo runs. Though he absolutely loved his Dynamic-class Freighter, he always thought it was just too much room for the very specific needs he had for the beloved ship. Clamped down on the multi layered rack were blasters and other armaments of many kinds. The weapons were of various manufactures and races. On the right side of the rack laid the blasters, though clamped into place on the left were blade weapons. As Sev thumbed through the selection his finger stopped on a rather short carbine. The grip was at the rear under the hinge of a foldable stock. At the edge of the barrel, grip point was secured inches from the end of the muzzle. The carbine, to Sev's liking, was equipped with a scope. Keilbourn eyed him funny as he watched Sev massage the blaster with glee. "That one?"

"Why not?" Sev asked with a grin still on his face.

"Really rare that one. Designed by the Trade Federation; only a handful was manufactured. They call it the Scalphunter," Keilbourn laughed.

"Perfect," Sev replied. He equipped it with a strap he found then continued to search through the rare collection. "You know, being friends would have come much sooner if you'd of started off by showing me your armory," Sev mused. Keilbourn grinned as he reached out to claim his blaster of choice, the GLC Firelancer. Sev then found a blaster pistol to his liking and slid it smoothly into a hip holster he had found. He still hated the baggy clothing, though strangely found comfort from the armament. Sev then briefly eyed the assortment of blades. He shrugged as he reached out for dagger which he strapped down on his boot. Keilbourn made similar choices, except for a short vibroblade the size of a machete. He strapped it to his back and slung his GLC on his shoulder. Within minutes, the ramp to the freighter was lowered and the two of them descended down the ramp, staying low and with their chosen blaster rifles ready. The torrent of rain poured mercilessly.

"I hate this planet," Keilbourn groaned as he stepped into the rain. The two of them circled the freighter, making sure their perimeter was safe. Both of them breathed slowly, expertly from behind their half masks.

"We're clear," Sev called out. They approached the front of the ship where the hull between the bow and the starboard side connected. Keilbourn reached for a remote in his pocket. He aimed it at the starboard block and pressed a button. A ladder then extended from the block down to Keilbourn's neck.

"Cover me," Keilbourn said as he leapt up and pulled himself onto the ladder with ease. Sev crouched down with his blaster readied and his eyes open. The former Commando could hear curses being spat from his companion as he observed the damage. The freighter had taken a good amount of damage. All about the hull, scorch marks dotted the pale green tinge of the plating.

"How does it look?" Sev called out. Keilbourn growled with aggravation.

"She took a beating," Keilbourn shouted back. "Repairs shouldn't take too long though." Sev chuckled as Keilbourn slung his rifle and crouched down to observe the damages further.

"So she's a she?"

"What else would she be?" Keilbourn scoffed.

"So what's her name then?" Sev asked. Keilbourn stopped and thought. Though he found the ship two years ago, he hadn't actually used it until six months ago; after a three month time span of restoring it. Since that time, he had been preoccupied by the escalation of the Clone Wars. He was adamant to never register it in the Republic or any other system, and never had found the need to name his freighter.

"Doesn't have one," Keilbourn said with a shrug. "Huh, go figure," he added as he went back to work.

"Hmm, maybe I'll help," Sev mused.

"Oh this'll be good," Keilbourn muttered with a roll of his eyes. Keilbourn clambered down the ladder. Compared to Sev whom had hunkered down under the expanse of the freighter, the ARC was soaked by the down pour of the rain. Keilbourn strode back to the ramp and stepped back into the ship. Sev followed, keeping his guard up and protecting his companion. Once back in the safety of the freighter, Sev too slung his blaster.

"So what's the deal?" Sev asked as he followed Keilbourn to the door across the ramp. They both entered into a large open area. Installed in the wall adjacent from the unusually wide door, was a large work table and tool rack to its left.

"The only thing stopping us from leaving right now would be a serious loss of control with our engines," Keilbourn said as he reached for a black bag which he slung on his shoulders. "I don't want to deal with another miss-jump," he added bitterly.

"Oh," Sev exclaimed. "How about for a name, 'Doma Toma Chizk'?" Sev mused he laughed away as Keilbourn mock laughed along.

"Very funny," Keilbourn replied. Keilbourn left the garage of the ship and took off through the left door to the main corridor which led to the engineering room. "Before we step back out there I want to get the lighting fixed so I can actually see what I'm doing." Keilbourn approached a terminal on the wall next to the door. Sev kept an eye open on the outside of the hall while Keilbourn used his tools to open the terminal and tinker with the power flow. Minutes passed of Sev keeping alert and Keilbourn fussing with the machinery before the former ARC popped out from behind it with a triumphant grin on his face.

"Got it," he exclaimed as the power flow stabilized and the lights all about the ship ignited. Outside, the exterior lights shone, spilling a ring of light around the freighter's perimeter. The two of them went back out into the rain to continue their work. Keilbourn again approached the ladder as Sev hunkered down to keep watch. Upon reaching the top Keilbourn suddenly let out a yell. Sev spun with his Scalphunter leveled at the edge where his companion disappeared to. To Sev's surprise, he then watched as Keilbourn was tossed far over the edge. With a pained groan, he slammed hard on his back.

"What the!" Sev exclaimed as he backed away to assist him yet keeping alert. Through the haze of rainfall and dark of night, something could be seen streaking high into the air. Before Sev knew it, it landed just in his face, and he was swept onto his back. Instinctively, the former Commando swept the attacker's legs out. Sev then leapt to pin it down by the arms. Now with a chance to identify the attacker, Sev gasped. The woman threw him off, using the advantage of his surprise. By some unexplained force, Sev was then suspended just above his reach of the ground. He couldn't move, though he struggled to fight the attackers' strange hold. Another woman at his left swung a long staff, smacking him in the midriff then following through with an uppercut. Sev reeled back, landing on his back again. His senses were dazed from the blows as another parry of attacks struck him in the chest. With each blow, Sev's temper flared, finally he had enough. He gathered his strength, grasping the staff as it came back for another hit. Sev wrenched it from her grip then slid it between her legs, before using it to trip her. As she planted to her back, Sev moved quickly, grasping the staff with both hands, choking her from behind.

"How do you like that!" Sev gloated. Suddenly, he felt a small prick in the lower of his back. One of the women had grasped the collar of his jacket while securing the blade.

"Release her!" she hissed in a heavily accented voice. Sev growled as he persisted; Commandos never back down.

"We'll let her go if you let him go," Keilbourn demanded in his strong voice. He stood to the side of the three locked in the ultimatum, with his GLC aimed at the head of the armed woman. Out of the corner of his eye, Keilbourn saw many spears directed at him. There were at least seven of them, all with sneers on their soft yet strong faces. For a while, they all stood there, Sev unrelenting, Keilbourn still armed and at the mercy of the armed woman. "Okay fine," Keilbourn said softly. "We mean no harm, I'm putting down my gun," Keilbourn assured. Slowly he lowered into a crouch, gently laying his blaster in the tall grass. The rain relentlessly dumped on the vast plains. "Sev, let her go," Keilbourn said stiffly. The former Commando groaned before dropping the staff, releasing the woman from his hold. She dropped to her knees, gagging and gasping. After regaining her breath she stood up quickly, retrieving her staff which she then directed at Sev. Sev remained on his feet, at the mercy of the woman with the blade.

"Now how about letting me go?" Sev growled back at her.

"Silence you!" the woman before him shot. The both of them could now discern the differences between her and the rest of the women. She seemed older, though still retained her beauty. Atop her shining silver hair, a small headband was wrapped with a jewel set on the forehead. She then turned her attention to Keilbourn.

"Who are you?" she demanded in her thick accent.

"I'm Keilbourn, that is Sev," the former ARC replied in a friendly tone. "We were soldiers of the Republic." The woman lessened her grip on her staff as she eyed Keilbourn more closely.

"Why no longer?" Keilbourn stared at her meaningfully, trying to send signals of not being threats.

"It aint the Republic no more," Keilbourn replied. "It's become something we don't like."

"Why are you here?" she finally asked. The hiss in her heavy voice was gone, replaced with genuine interest.

"We were attacked and we crashed." Her eyes narrowed at the mention of the attack. "Oh the attack was far from here," Keilbourn assured her. "We just need to make a quick repair then we'll be on our way." Her gaze softened again as the rest of her slim body eased.

"We help you," she said with a small smile. She still retained an air of authority in her manner. "Release him Barruka," she hissed at the woman with her hold on Sev. All around them, the other women lowered their staffs and relaxed from their rigid stances. "I am Augwynne Djo, Clan Mother of the Singing Mountains," she stated proudly. Keilbourn needed no explanation to Augwynne's claim. The Witches of Dathomir were the dominant races of the hostile world. All split into separate clans, each one reigned over their own regions. The witches thrived as a kind of warrior race, living off the land's hostile presence. Each of the witches was garbed in armored skins from the reptilian prey they've hunted. The women surrounding the Clones wore such skins on their torsos, though their toned thighs and shoulders were bare. The one named Barukka finally released Sev. The former Commando spun with narrowed eyes and grit teeth.

"You know it's only easy when you sneak up on a Commando," he remarked bitterly. The witch only giggled before leaning in closer.

"Seemed pretty simple to me," she replied as she slid her knife into a sheath against her bare thigh. She waved her hand gingerly as she walked away from him. "Sorry about the prick," she called back.

"y-yeah," Sev stammered. "You owe me." Again she looked over her shoulder; the look was like nothing Sev had ever before seen. He had no idea what had suddenly come over him. There was just something about watching her lean, conditioned body move away gracefully as she did, that sent a wave of fluttering in the pit of his stomach. Keilbourn continued to converse with Augwynne about his freighter's status. After nearly a half hour of exchanging information on top of the hull of the ship, Augwynne told Keilbourne of one of the Clan Daughters which knew a good amount of mechanics. The Clan Mother called out to the gathering.

"Duumil-Hae, Barukka, stay here. Everyone else return to the tribe." The witch named Duumil-Hae made one leap, launching into the air and landing briskly before them. Keilbourn watched in amazement as the witch made quick repairs with only a reach of her hand. The mass of witches suddenly slunk away from the perimeter of light, spilling back into the darkness. Within minutes, the young witch Duumil-Hae emerged from her work.

"It is done," she said with her heavy accent. Keilbourn called down to Sev.

"Check the status in the cockpit," Keilbourn requested. The former Commando trotted off up the ramp and through the now brightly lit corridors. Sev reached the cockpit, leaning on his chair and peering at the status screen. Sure enough, the freighter was in much better shape than before. Sev ran back out to the rain and yelled back up at Keilbourn.

"She's green," Sev.

"Well she aint hundred percent, but she'll have to do," Keilbourn murmured to himself. The two witches before him looked to each other in confusion over the former ARC's context. He turned to Augwynne with a grateful grin on his face. "Can't thank you enough," he said as he bowed. A smile spread on the witch's face.

"Just journey safely my friend."

Now preparing to put Dathomir behind them, both of the Clones had enough to reflect on. Had Keilbourn been more like the conventional hard mannered, ill-forgiving ARCs, his prejudice from his previous experience on the planet would have clouded any attempt of reason. Though as he sequenced the freighter for takeoff, he felt he now had a friend he could return to. Sev was quickly running back through the perimeter making sure they were ready to leave. The former Commando felt satisfied and approached the ramp casually. Before able to plant his foot from the soggy grass to the cold metal of the ramp, he was suddenly pulled back by an arm around his muscular, thick neck. Sev gagged as he struggled from the surprise. In his ear he heard small giggling. The hold around Sev was then released with a gentle push from his back. He turned around with another look of agitation on his face.

"Hmm, still easy," Barukka mused playfully. At the sight of her pale, soft, beautiful face, draped by jet black, dreaded hair over her pale almost grey eyes, the hardened Commando flustered. Though he'd been all over the galaxy in his years of service, he'd never seen anyone as stunningly attractive as her. Her lips curved into a flirtatious grin. All sense of annoyance drained from him as his equally pale face gained a light pigmentation.

"Yeah well," he stammered. Any other attempt of speech was then shot down as her lips planted onto his. Sev had no idea what to do, though she did all the work. After a moment of their faces being locked together, she slowly pulled away. As her head straightened, she giggled again. Sev stood limp compared to his rigid military posture. His shoulders slouched, with his eyes wide open and mouth gaped in utter surprise. Sev finally regained his composure shaking back into his rigid form.

"Wha-wha-what was that for?" Sev asked stupidly. Barukka reeled backwards, still just feet away from the ramp.  
"I owed you, remember?" she replied with another flirtatious grin. She then waved gingerly with her fingers again before turning away. With a flash of movement, her slim yet conditioned form spilled through the aura of light provided by the freighter and into the darkness. After minutes of still standing on the ramp, Sev finally regained his senses and turned up the ramp. As he strode through the main hold, he could hear Keilbourne calling out impatiently.

"What took you so bloody long?" he asked as Sev climbed into his seat.

"Sorry, just last checks," he lied. Keilbourn gunned the thrusters, which roared magnificently. Though the hull of the freighter was still a wreck, it performed just fine.

"So, what'd you think of Dathomir?" Keilbourn asked as the ship broke atmosphere.

"Not bad, good wildlife," he added with a grin. "I'll have to come back and hunt someday." Keilbourn glanced over at his companion with a cocked eyebrow; the Commando was making no sense.

"You remember it's a hostile place," Keilbourn informed.

"Oh she's hostile alright," Sev mused smugly. Keilbourn glanced at him again with an even more bewildered stare.

"So you liked it," Keilbourn pushed on. Sev glanced back at the orange tinged planet, which soon was swallowed by the swirl of stars as the freighter jumped into hyperspace.

"More than you'll ever know."

Chapter 06

The both of the Clones appreciated a smooth landing. Just minutes ago, they'd emerged from hyperspace to find a light green giant of a planet. Onderon was the dominant planet of the area, though what immediately caught their weary eyes was the deep, lush almost toxic green moon which orbited just away from the planet's atmosphere. Dxun was heavily laden with dense jungle, housing the most lethal of occupants. Somewhere deep in the green atmosphere was Sev and Keilbourn's one hope for a new start. Though well familiar with the Culture and customs of the legendary warrior race, the Mandalorians, they were unfamiliar with Dxun's part in their existence. All they knew was what Walon had told them. Their chance for help would come through a clan leader by the name of Vesu Ordo. As the freighter continued to skim over the jungles, the Clones onboard searched long and hard for any sign of their lead. Sev was about to point out a specific large area where the trees and vegetation appeared more like a plateau than tree tops. The entire general roof of the jungles seemed flat, blanketing the grounds compared to the points of the Wroshyr trees which covered Kashyyyk. Beyond the area, the levels of the trees were taller. Sev found this formation bizarre.

"Hey Keilbourn," he called out. "Turn back around." The former ARC nodded as he banked for another run over the strange formation. Sev pointed it out.

"Do you see that?" Keilbourn peered out the window.

"That's not completely natural," he mumbled. "I'm getting some readings too," he added after consulting a console on his controls.

"Should we check it out?" Sev asked.

"Think so," the former ARC replied. "There we go I see a spot." Keilbourn directed the freighter to a river bed bending and cutting away the greenery. He lowered the freighter, planting either landing gear on either side of the river. Minutes later they emerged, armed again down the ramp.

"Nice landing," Sev spat sarcastically. He waved his hands indicating the side of the river where the ramp had been lowered. On the other side of the bed, just a mile deeper into the jungle was the suspicious area. Keilbourn easily leapt over the expanse of the river, and then followed by his skeptical companion. The both of them strangely enjoyed the thick jungle. As former Special Operations soldiers, they easily adapted to new environments, though their adaption for Dxun came to them through a sense of comfort. Even so, they still pushed forward into the jungle with their chosen and now favored blasters leveled. Careful not to reveal themselves, they crept through the heavy foliage at the floor of the jungle. The air was humid and their baggy clothing didn't help. After trekking for their estimated mile, the two Clones began to have doubts.

"What do you think?" Keilbourn asked as he scanned the thick woods carefully.

"Not sure just yet," Sev replied as he too continued to search. He observed closely the behavior of the forest's ceiling. Sev noticed the collection of branches entwining together, creating a dome which reached far from where they stood. Sev ventured just a little further till his eye caught an inconsistency. He stopped and stared at the sudden break in vegetation. Keilbourn looked from where the former Commando stared then to his companion.

"What is it?" he asked in a hushed tone.

"Stone," Sev replied. "Stone blended in the jungle." He slowly approached the spot which a green, residue colored patch of stone laid within an immersion of vegetation. He brushed his hand on the stone, scraping away the overgrown foliage which layered it. By adjusting his angle, standing closer to the sudden block in the cluttered forest, he noticed it stretched far down the expanse of the jungle. "A wall," Sev realized out loud. Keilbourn's gaze climbed high up the wall to find the edge which was dominated by overgrown trees.

"Could be ruins," Keilbourn observed. Before Sev could reply, he was suddenly forced to dodge. A flare of light reflecting off metal streaked just above the former Commando's head, planting firmly on the vine overgrow. Sev instinctively let off a burst from his blaster. A swift figure leapt from its perch in the tree, releasing another three of the sharp, thin, shiny blades. As he touched down to the forest floor, Keilbourn dodged the toss, but caught one of the blades in his triceps. The completely armored figured stood at full height, over the already tall and broad Commandos. Both Sev and Keilbourn recognized the type of armor worn by the ambusher, as their Mandalorian trainers on Kamino had worn it proudly. The armor was colored brown and white with a maroon trim. The Mandalorian peered hard at them through the black, T eye plate on his helmet. Worn on across his chest plate was a decorative, blood-red band. Sev watched carefully as the gauntlets of his armor produced another, razor thin blade. Spilling out of the heavy cover of the forest, four more of the armored figures emerged, with blasters of various types raised. Also across their chest plates was the same band. On their left shoulder plate was a symbol which they donned proudly. Sev leveled his Scalphunter; Keilbourn grunted as he held up his blaster. The Mandalorian before them scoffed loudly.

"Well you're definitely not Mando," he taunted with a young, boastful voice. "Moaning and crying over a little prick in the arm," he added with another scoff. The others surrounding them sniggered.

"I'd like to see you laugh again after he wipes this jungle floor with your sheb," Sev snapped from behind his half mask.

"Ke nu'jurkadir sha Mando'ade, aruetii," he threatened. In a mock response Sev laughed as his vision narrowed on the bold Mandalorian.

"Don't mess with a Commando," he retorted. Sev then leapt to the side, firing away with controlled bursts of his blaster. His precise shots hit the Mandalorians on their armored plating, though only fazed them without any lethal consequence. Sev was well aware of the powerful capabilities of the Mandalorian iron known as Beskar. The legendary refined metal could withstand even the slice of a Jedi's lightsaber, let alone the bolts of a blaster. Sev quickly rounded out of his crouch behind a large tree behind him to his right. Keilbourn too took cover from a neighboring tree.

"I thought the idea was to make friends with these guys," he grunted as he pulled the throwing knife from his upper arm.

"You saw what kind of guys they are," Sev said. "I think they need an example," he mused. Sev and Keilbourn both popped from cover, sweeping the jungle with a wave of blaster fire. The Mandalorians opposite them responded mercilessly.

"Kill them," he growled in Mando'a. Two of the flanking Mandalorians nodded and charged to the Clones' cover. When they burst through the brush to the outer sides of the two trees, they fired aggressively at the lower end of the trunk. After realizing the trespassers were no longer there, they darted their gaze around in search of them. Sev and Keilbourn took the advantage and dropped from the branches they'd retreated to. Keilbourn dropped down, slamming his clasped fists on the top of the Mandalorian's helmeted head. With a loud clunk, the stunned warrior collapsed to his feet. His trained and conditioned killing instinct instilled from his culture, didn't allow him to stay unfocused for long, though Keilbourn had all the time he needed. He gripped the warrior in a strong debilitating hold. To Keilbourn's left, Sev too had incapacitated his target. From the former Commando's vicious hit, the Mandalorian struggled to compose his strength again. Sev lifted him onto his shoulder, extracting his 434 blaster pistol from his hip holster. Boldly, the two Clones stepped into the open. Upon spying their downed comrades, the Mandalorian in the brown armor held out his hand, with his blaster pistol still leveled. The other two warriors ceased their firing, though refused to lower their blasters. Sev flung the Mandalorian off his shoulder, still grasping the front collar and aiming his 434 at in the face of the warrior as he held him down with his knee.

"We told ya," Keilbourn mocked.

"What makes you think this is over?" the Mandalorian in brown shot. "We've still got your heads in our sights."

"And them?" Sev motioned with a flick of his pistol at the fallen warrior trapped under the former Commando's knee. With an unbroken stare at the imposter, the Mandalorian grit his teeth.

"Necessary losses," he said in a tempered tone. "What are you?" he finally asked. Sev and Keilbourn glanced at each other before returning their gaze at the armed Mandalorians.

"Twins from Dantooine," Keilbourn answered. "We're in search of Clan Ordo," he said in a strong voice despite his bleeding wound.

"Well you found us," one of the other warriors replied. "We are the Ordo Aran, and we do not tolerate trespassers," he snapped threateningly.

"Take us to Vesu Ordo," Sev said. The Mandalorian across from them eased his stance momentarily before tensing up again.

"What do you want with our Clan leader?" he hissed in an enraged tone; his blaster pistol was extended fully aimed at Sev.

"We have a mutual friend who referred us to him. He said Vesu could help," Keilbourn replied. The Mandalorians surveyed the trespassers carefully before finally lowering their weapons. Sev released the warrior from his knee as Keilbourn let go his hold. The two Mandalorians, insulted though impressed, rejoined their comrades.

"We will take you to him," the brown armored Mandalorian said harshly. "Though chances are you will not leave alive."

Chapter 07

Led at gunpoint, the Clones were guided around the perimeter of the clan's hidden home. Finally the solid, overgrown wall opened to an arch, draped with vegetation. The Clones advanced to enter into the area but were stopped by a shove from the Mandalorian at the point.

"You're not going inside armed like that," he snapped. Sev glanced over at Keilbourn, whom in turn nodded. With a sigh of reluctance, Sev unslung his Scalphunter and removed his belt which strapped down his shoulder holster. As he reached down cautiously to remove his dagger from his boot, he saw Keilbourn in the corner of his eye doing the same. The two Spec Ops Clones carefully passed their gear into the awaiting and impatient hands of the Mandalorian escorts. Finally satisfied, the Mandalorian in brown armor stepped aside. Sev and Keilbourn pushed through under the arch, stepping into a vast open area. Keilbourn took in the ancient compound, almost feeling the long and legendary history of the high stone walls. Along the inside of the fortified walls of the compound, were large buildings made of stone. In front of the ancient architecture were what appeared as good sized, green huts. The two were led to a place in the center rear of the compound. All around were more and more beings donning the magnificent Mandalorian armor. The warrior in brown armor headed the procession with Sev and Keilbourn behind him, followed by armed and ready Mandalorians. Standing at the edge of a large circular stand loomed another bearing the armor though with more majesty than those around him. Held at his side was the helmet of his silver armor. His face was aged and scarred, though vibrancy was retained in his persona. Draped over his left shoulder was a short grey cape with a light blue insignia stenciled in the middle surrounded by a white border. Keilbourn noticed the symbol was the same as the emblem shown on the Mandalorians' shoulders. The warrior's previously occupied gaze settled on the procession, fixing on the two intruders. Once the procession was a yard away, the Mandalorian in brown turned and stopped them again.

"Stay," he barked. He turned again and advanced towards the royal Mandalorian. As he approached him, his gaze snapped from Keilbourn and Sev to the Mandalorian. Before reaching him, the warrior in brown removed his helmet. From the back, the Clones noticed his sand colored hair fall just above his shoulders. The Mandalorian stepped close to the other, bowing in respect before leaning in to deliver his message. Keilbourn leaned in close to Sev.

"Must be Vesu," he murmured softly. Sev nodded as he observed the mighty looking Mandalorian. After a brief moment, the warrior in brown leaned away and turned to face the two Clones. Sev and Keilbourn knew he would be young, though were shocked at just how young he was. The warrior though tall and built, merely appeared around twenty, though was really twenty-seven. With a heavy rasp, the Mandalorian in silver spoke.

"My son tells me you attacked them," he announced with his massive arms crossed.

"Funny, he forgot to mention who threw the first blade," Sev scoffed.

"Lucky for you, I missed," the warrior in brown grumbled. Vesu Ordo glanced at his son standing at his side.

"Calm yourself Cautiss," he said simply. Cautiss, still fuming, stepped back slightly as Vesu turned to face them again. "Cautiss is the lead contender for my rule, therefore the captain of Ordo Aran, the security squad of our clan. Had I've been in his boots and seen you so armed, I too would have thrown the first knife," he said sternly. Sev glanced up at Keilbourn who had taken the reigns in communicating with the Mandalorian. The Clone glanced back before settling a cautious eye back on Vesu. "This mutual friend Cautiss mentioned," Vesu started up. "Who?" Keilbourn grew apprehensive. He had no idea what the relationship between the two Mandalorians was like. Depending on their history, the two Spec Ops Clones could themselves in the middle of a struggle with thoroughly bred warriors.

"Walon Vau," he finally pronounced. Keilbourn watched Vesu's reaction closely. He saw the Mandalorian's hardened face soften and he breathed deeply. His expression was almost blank, as if he was replaying a memory in his mind's eye.

"It has been since the civil war since I've seen that bastard," he finally said. His tone was sore, though edged with humor. Keilbourn felt lost as he tried to analyze the Mandalorian's reply.

"He said you could help us," Keilbourn said slowly. Vesu inhaled sharply through his nose.

"After attacking our clan's security team, you expect me to assist you?" he stated mercilessly. Sev and Keilbourn tensed, sensing a negative air about the Mandalorians surrounding them. Suddenly, a smirk cracked on his face. "Then again, you did beat them," he mused. "Who are you? Remove your masks," he demanded. Again the Clones glanced at each other. Reluctantly, they both reached up to their nose lines and pulled down the half masks to around their collars. The expressions and reactions of the Mandalorians varied. Vesu's eyes widened in surprise, as Cautiss' face scrunched into furry.

"Clones," he spat through grit teeth. "Allow me Father, they are scum," he said as he glared at them with eyes like daggers. He reached behind to the back of his belt and extracted a combat knife.

"Enough Cautiss!" Vesu spat sternly at his son. "Who are you?" he asked again.

"I am Keilbourn, former ARC of the Republic," the Clone said pointing to himself

"I am Sev, former Commando of the Republic," he said gruffly as he stepped forward.

"We are fugitives. Walon Vau, our trainer has said we could find a fresh start here and you could help," Keilbourn said genuinely. Vesu stared at them, surveying the broad Clones before him

"Why not go to Mandalore?" another said, standing to the left of Vesu. By both her slimmer fit within the armor and voice, feminine yet strong, Sev and Keilbourn knew she had to be a wiser woman, Vesu's wife. "Join the other deserters at Kyrimorut?" she suggested.

"Walon sent us here, Sev replied stiffly."

"You want to be Mandalorians," Vesu said. He sighed as he stared down the Clones. "Long has it been since outsiders have joined our clan."

"Then why even consider it!" snapped Cautiss again. Vesu glanced at his son at his right.

"Cautiss," he snapped. "They may not be Mando born, but they are direct results of our late Mand'alor, may he rest in peace," Vesu said softly. Sev and Keilbourn looked to each other in confusion. They were unclear on whom the Mandalorian referred to.

"To be a true Mandalorian, it is no easy feat," Vesu's wife said stiffly, staring the two Clones down harshly.

"We are ready," Keilbourn declared strongly.

"In truth, my Chief," began one of the Mandalorians from behind the Clones said as he stepped into everyone's attention. "By defeating us, they've shown worthiness," he said. Sev turned to watch the Mandalorian. He realized the one who argued for them was the warrior which Sev had subdued. With respect, the former Commando nodded, which the warrior donning red armor returned.

"A fair point," Vesu considered. "Though not good enough." Keilbourn swallowed hard searching for the right words to say.

"Sir, by honoring us with such a request, both my brother and I swear to include our fight in the defense of this clan." The former ARCs words were strong and sincere. The ears of Vesu Ordo heard every word which reached him where few tended to touch.

"You have heart Keilbourn," he declared with a grin. "A Mando name given to you by Walon yes?" he inquired fondly. Keilbourn still with sincerity on his face, nodded as he remembered the Mandalorian trainer call him the peculiar name after an exercise; which had ended with the ARC stealthily subduing two training droids from behind.

"Sergeant Vau has always held tightly to his roots, especially in training his troops," Keilbourn assured him. Vesu nodded fondly, and then turned his gaze at Sev who lingered behind his companion.

"You, your awfully quiet," Vesu said stiffly.

"Actions speak louder than words," Sev said grimly.

"Sound logic," Vesu replied with another grin. "Then perhaps to prove your worth, a duel." Sev's hardened expression stretched to a devious grin. He was nowhere near as well spoken as Keilbourn, though Sev knew combat very well.

"I accept," he said boldly. Vesu laughed softly.

"You will fight Cautiss as he is the lead contender of my rule." The Mandalorian in brown armor looked from his father to the Clone before him. As he looked Sev up and down, taking in his sloppy appearance and baggy clothing, a sneer spread on his face.

"Sorry Sev, guess you don't get to be Mandalorian after all."

"We'll see," the Commando glared back.

Chapter 08

The two combatants circled each other, tracing the round fighting circle. The arena was surrounded by stone risers which Mandalorians of Clan Ordo sat down to watch the sporting duels which were held for either entertainment or political resolve. Word had spread throughout the clan, Cautiss the Lead Contender was dueling a former Republic Commando. Only few knew what that meant, having picked up on the knowledge in their travels throughout the galaxy. The stands were filled with armored individuals who observed without their helmets. Most of them were convinced on who would emerge as the victor; though standing at the edge of the fighting circle was Keilbourn, arms crossed and genuinely worried. Vesu too stood, though on the opposite side of the ring, also inconclusive of the outcome. The two continued to round around each other eyes narrowed and focused on each other. Cautiss was born a fighter, practically raised in the fighting circle; just as Sev was trained, sparring his fellow pod-brothers under the observation of his mentor. Cautiss, confidently made the first move, convinced the duel would end quickly. He charged fast down the circle then pounced on Sev, wrapping his arms around his middle, using his momentum to drop him to the dirt inside the ring. Once on his back, Sev struggled as Cautiss rose still straddling the Commando, throwing blows to his face. Sev felt the pound of the warrior's fist. He finally composed his focus and brought his arms up. With his right, he blocked away a barrage fists then used his left to wrap around the Cautiss' collar. Sev threw him into the dirt, gaining dominance which he used to send a volley of blows to his combatant. With every other delivery, he used his elbow to slam into the Mandalorian's face. All around the ring, gasps went up as they watched the Lead Contender take the beating. Cautiss then used his legs, driving his knee into Sev's spine. The forceful blow struck the Commando, sending a streak of pine up his spine. Cautiss tossed the stunned Commando off into the dirt. Sev rolled to a crouch and watched as Cautiss rose from the dirt, in a readied stance. Again, Cautiss struck first. Swinging his leg up, to Sev's torso. With a grin, the Commando grasped his leg, though Cautiss sent a follow through. He leapt up, spinning horizontally in the air, sending his free foot into Sev's face. Sev dropped back, his face gushing blood from a broken nose. Keilbourn tensed as he watched and heard the roars and cheers of the observers. Vesu, though silently, too tensed as he watched the fight continue. Cautiss stood up, soaking in the praise coming from his clansmen as he boastfully walked up to Sev. He had groggily risen to his hands and knees, blood still pouring.

"You don't know what Lead Contender means do you?" Cautiss sneered.

"What, big mouth?" Sev replied. Cautiss sent an angry fist down on the weakened Commando. Sev instead grabbed his punch and reached with his other hand to grasp the Mandalorian's armored shoulder. He pulled him down as he popped from his downed position, throwing his knee into Cautiss' face. Cautiss flew back, collapsing into the dirt. Enraged and bleeding, the Mandalorian swept his legs, though Sev jumped over the sweep, recognizing it as an attack commonly executed by his pod-brothers. Cautiss stood up again. The Mandalorian swung his fists at the former Commando, who blocked and parried the blows expertly. Expression and opinion began to change about the stands around the ring as the fight ensued. The general opinion quickly changed from, this would be over quickly, to, this is one hell of a fight. As he continued to fend off the attacks, Sev observed his combatant. Cautiss, though expert, was easily angered, and rash, always striking first. Finally Cautiss grabbed Sev's wrist, spinning him to face the opposite direction. He then used his other arm to capture the former Commando in a hold around his neck. Cautiss struggled to force Sev down to his knees where he could gain an impenetrable dominance. Sev however struggled back, finally throwing him off. Cautiss spun away unaware of Sev's strike. The Commando tackled the Mandalorian face first into the dirt. He climbed onto his back, holding down the combatant's arm with his right, and grasping the left with his own. He held it out, ready to dislocate it. Gasps of surprise went out from the stands.

"Surrender?" Sev growled.

"Never, Aruetil!" Cautiss shouted.

"Fine," Sev grunted as he pushed the Mandalorian's arm out of place. With a pop, the limb dropped limp at the warrior's side. Cautiss only grunted loudly from the extreme pain, which he had been accustomed to since the age of eight. Sev dismounted the Mandalorian standing up, face caked with his blood. He turned his back on the downed warrior and faced Vesu who continued to watch. Sev wondered why the leader did not declare a victor, let alone announce the fight was over. Suddenly another outburst rose from the crowd. From behind Sev was grasped around the collar and a powerful blow drove into the back of his leg. Sev cried out as the blow damaged his leg. Sev collapsed held up only by Cautiss' single hold around his neck. Sev growled as he reached up and grasped the Mandalorian's shoulder plates tightly, using his strength to throw the combatant onto his back into the dirt. Sev dropped, propping himself up on his good leg. Cautiss kicked his body up into a crouch, turning again on Sev. The former Commando looked up and glared angrily with his pain stricken eyes. Sev kicked up from the dirt with his good leg, sending himself soaring into a tackle which dropped Cautiss on his back again. Sev propped himself up again, on the stomach of the Mandalorian. With his right he held down the warrior's good arm, and with his left, pounded repeatedly on the dislocated shoulder. Cautiss cried out as the blows sent massive streaks of agony through his body. Sev followed through again with continuous blows to the Mandalorian's head. Cautiss finally managed to free his arm, throwing few punches that did nothing to stop the former Commando. Cautiss' eyes, swollen and black, began to close over. Sev, noticing this, threw his last blow to the stomach of his combatant, as he shifted his weight back, kneeing in pain.

"I'm done," Sev announced through heavy breaths and over Cautiss' groans.

"The fight is not over," Vesu said stiffly, still tense from watching.

"It is for me. I will not kill him," Sev declared again, groggily yet with focus and confidence. Keilbourn's shocked gaze followed all others on the stands, watching in awe at the weary Commando, then eagerly to their Clan Chieftain. Vesu watched him closely again, then smiled.

"This fight is over," he declared. "You Sev have proven your worth." Cautiss slowly and agonizingly rose, sitting in the dirt, his face gushing blood. Sev turned to his combatant, watching carefully. After a moment, the two weary, bloody fighters nodded with heavy heads.

"Well fought," Cautiss mumbled with a pained attempt. He raised his hand. Sev smirked painfully as he too raised his hand. The two grasped each other's forearms, and then slid their grips down to clasp hands. Sev felt an instance of déjà vu, recalling the peculiar gesture from his youth.

"Vode," Sev replied.

Chapter 09

Though Sev only required a couple of hour's submersion in a bacta tank to mend his shattered leg, the recovery would take nearly a couple of days. Though Vesu accepted them into the clan, most of the other Mandalorians were skeptical. Following the duel, Sev was led away to the clan's infirmary. Keilbourn however was led away by Vesu Ordo.

"Your brother will heal easily," he assured Keilbourn as they walked away from the fighting circle. "We have some of the finest combat medics in the galaxy. They get a lot of practice," he mused. Keilbourn grinned as he followed the clan leader.

"Sev's harder than you'd think," Keilbourn replied.

"I don't doubt it. But there's plenty of hardness in this clan. I accepted him because he also has something else this clan prides," he said. "Like you, he has heart," Vesu replied.

"That's very important to you isn't it?" Keilbourn asked.

"It's important to all Mandalorians," Vesu said. "Its what keeps us alive and fighting." Vesu paused as they continued to walk through the compound. "I've met a share of Clones," he continued. "Though they looked like the Mand'alore, they were nothing like him, nothing like you," he said with a fond grin. "Something I sense was instilled by Walon Vau," he said with a grin. Keilbourn nodded.

"And Jango Fett," he added. Vesu stopped smiled briefly to himself as if from a memory.

"Of course," he said fondly.

"How do you and Walon know each other?" Keilbourn asked as they continued down the compound.

"Vau and I fought years ago in the Civil War, under Mand'alore Fett against the splinter cell, Deathwatch," he replied. "I didn't necessarily like the man, until there was a sniper. Would've killed me had he not of taken the bolt himself." Keilbourn listened intently. "Left a mark on his chest plate, but he was back up in no time." Keilbourn laughed in disbelief. Again, Vesu stopped walking as he replayed it in his head. "After that, there was an ambush which divided our forces," Vesu continued. "Haven't seen him since." Keilbourn frowned.

"Then how do you know we're not lying to you?" he asked. "How do you know he's not dead?" Vesu laughed again. "It takes quite a lot to put that bastard down," he mused. Keilbourn laughed also, agreeing without question. "So," Vesu spoke with a new air. "Here's your new home," he said, pointing at a large green dome which was constructed out of woven wood. The ground had been dug out, providing more space in the hut. Keilbourn walked down through the curtain in the front. The Vheh'yaim looked flimsy and cheap, though the traditional Mandalorian dwellings were far from it. The outside sheet of woven wood was sturdy, though added stability was provided by the metal skeleton of the dome. The hut's primitive outside was lye as well. The home was installed with a climate thermostat system which regulated depending on the outside weather. Also inside was a fully operational computer for transmissions and file storage. The cozy home was separated to three rooms, one for each of them to claim and the other as a gathering area. As Keilbourn looked around in surprise and joy, Vesu smirked. "Yours to do as you please," he said.

"Can't thank you enough," Keilbourn replied.

"No, you can't," Vesu said as he tossed a small pouch to him. Keilbourn caught it and glanced down at it. "Arvon aint cheap, and if you're going to be Mando, you're going to look it," he replied. "Pay me back when you can," Vesu added as he turned to leave from The Clones' new home. Keilbourn stood alone with a blank expression of surprise on his face and the coin filled bag in his hands. He took in the surroundings of the huts inside. The living room was empty except for the computer which was located off to the right. After looking through the hut again, Keilbourn stepped back out under the green canopy which disguised the massive compound. The feeling of being a part of the Mandalorian civilization was indescribable he felt an even greater sense of belonging than he ever felt in the GAR. As he looked around, he took the chance of looking around; taking in every element of life thriving in the community. Their home was at the end of a long line of huts in a procession from one end of the wall to the other. Across the compound, in a staggered formation was another procession of the huts. Behind the huts were the ancient stone buildings built into the fortifications of the wall. Most official business and dealings were done in these buildings. It was after inquiring from one the farmers who lived and maintained their crops at the edge of the compound, did the former ARC learn that the craftsman's anvil was located in one of the stone buildings. As Keilbourn climbed the stairs, the pound of metal rang. The entrance was dark, dimly illuminated by a warm glow. Black smoke billowed from the chimney shaft in the rear. As Keilbourn stepped into the room, a massive man ceased the pounding of his hammer. He looked up at him as he laid it down.

"Aw, the new one," he bellowed deeply. The Mandalorian Craftsman was tall and extremely broad shouldered. From behind his light under suit, his pectorals bulged. From the waist down, he wore his Beskar plating. His eyes were covered by goggles, which he raised to his forehead with a large, heavily gloved hand. He laid down his hammer and sidestepped out from behind the anvil.

"Your Arvon?" Keilbourn asked.

"Sure am," he said gruffly. "I watched your brother fight," he continued. "Only saw half of it though. Thought I should come back and get started."

"On what?" Keilbourn asked with a frown.

"His armor," he answered. Again Keilbourn frowned.

"But you don't know any of his measurements," Keilbourn replied. Arvon laughed with a heavy guffaw.

"I've been smithing Beskar for many, many years," he laughed. "I can read a man's measurements easily. Yours won't be too much bigger than his, he said almost to himself.

"Well, thank you," Keilbourn said.

"There's a problem though," he said as he turned back to his anvil. "If you want full Beskar, which you do," he declared stiffly. "You'll have to wait for Ogian to return from his errand," he said. Keilbourn frowned again.

"Come again?" he asked.

"Ogian is our Clan-Runner. If I or any other one of us needs an errand ran, he goes. He'll have to pick up some more of the ore," he explained. Arvon continued pounding on the anvil with his hammer. In his free hand, he held a nearly shaped shoulder plate for armor. Keilbourn thought for a moment.

"Sev and I could do it," he replied.

"By all means, you'd get your armor much faster," the craftsman replied. "Beskar, however, is rare only found on either Mandalore or Concordia."

"Not a problem," Keilbourn answered with a smirk.

Chapter 10

The freighter popped from hyperspace into the slow drift of normal space. Through the transparisteel window, the new Mandalorian initiates saw the large shaded planet of Mandalore. Keilbourn knew of the planet's bloody history as it was the birthplace of the Mandalorian race. The two had left Dxun for Mandalore two days after they'd joined the clan, to prepare for the trip and also prepare Keilbourn's still unnamed Dynamic-class Freighter. Now that they were there, before them laid a choice. The ore which Arvon required was legendary to the warrior race, and would not easily be attained. What was worse was the need to stay inconspicuous.

"So which one?" Sev asked. The two had left the cockpit and retreated to the main hold, studying the planet through the navicomputer. Mandalore was projected over the table as they assessed its situation.

"If we looked like Mandalorians, then I would say Mandalore; we would blend in better," Keilbourn observed.

"But no, we still look like sloppy space scum," Sev replied bitterly.

"Plus since I last knew, the Republic has had an eye there for awhile. I don't want to risk another encounter."

"Ha, you don't want to risk it," Sev scoffed as he motioned towards his still recovering leg. The Bacta Tank had done its job, and mended the shattered bones, but it still felt stiff, Sev was unable to do much more than jog on it comfortably, though that wouldn't stop him.

"Well our other option is Concordia, Mandalore's moon," Keilbourn suggested as he tapped the display on the terminal of the computer. The projection switched to show the brown and green moon.

"This place is covered in mines, we should be able to get in and out easily," Sev observed.

"Plus this place sees a ton of black market life," Keilbourn offered. Sev smirked as he glanced over to the former ARC.

"Perfect place for twins from Dantooine," the former Commando mused. After directing the freighter through Concordia's atmosphere, Keilbourn flew the ship to their decided destination. Sev had found an old spaceport founded by the Mandalorians to ship out their Beskar findings. The freighter blended in the assortment of ships easily. After landing in an available port, they descended the ramp, still wearing their disguises, armed with only their chosen blaster pistols and knives which they concealed. "So what?" Sev exclaimed as they walked down to an old dusty street. "Is our ship now _The Mando Gofer_?" Keilbourn looked to Sev with a weird expression.

"That's it, no more helping with the name," he grunted.

"Well what then?" he pushed. "You got something in mind?" Sev asked. Keilbourn pondered as they walked down the road. All around them, spacers of all species populated the dustbowl. To their excitement, few Mandalorians, armed in their full Beskar also roamed about the small town. "So where do we start?" Sev inquired. "We probably can't just go and ask for some." Keilbourn looked about the town then found a bit of inspiration. As he pointed to the small building Sev groaned.

"Another Cantina?"

"Perfect place to pick up some loose intel," Keilbourn jeered. They crossed the street and entered the small building. The smell was repulsive, smacking them in their faces as they entered the dark single roomed facility. A large round bar with a glowing rim was placed in the center of the room. Standing inside the elongated ring of the bar was a six armed Besalisk serving as the bartender. Keilbourn slid up to the bar, staying concealed to a certain extent with Sev keeping watch behind. The Besalisk lacked the fin on the top of its head; Keilbourn knew it was a female. The bulbous bartender sweat profusely from under her tunic and apron. After she finished pouring a brew into a mug, she slid it to a spacer down the bar.

"Who's next?" she bellowed. Keilbourn stepped into her view. "What will it be?"

"A Fox Beer please," he answered warmly. The Besalisk nodded before turning away and with her many arms wiped a mug and pulled the nozzle from the central tap. The clear mug filled with the foamy, red liquid.

"There you have it," she jeered. Keilbourn nodded then tossed down a handful of credits. She scooped up the pile then looked back at the strange spacer. "This is twice as much as that costs," she said with confusion. Keilbourn leaned in slightly.

"I'd like to know something," he muttered. The Besalisk's large gold eyes darted from left to right before fixing back on Keilbourn. "Where do I go to find a dealer?" Keilbourn said with caution.

"Depends on what you're seeking," she replied.

"I need an underground marketer," Keilbourn explained.

"Careful with that talk, mister," she chided. "The Imperials hear you talkin' like that, and your Bantha fodder," she muttered. Keilbourn frowned.

"The Empire, they're here?"

"Been here for a week or so," she answered with a distasteful exclamation. "What are you trying to acquire?" she finally asked. Keilbourn stared at her intently.

"Iron," he said minimally. The Besalisk guffawed in laughter.

"No one goes looking for the black market to find iron," she replied. "Nah, you're looking for Beskar." Keilbourn smirked with a raise of his eyebrows. "Well my friend, you aint gonna find any from the dealers no more," she spat. Keilbourn frowned.

"Where then?" he inquired. She sighed, looking away from the spacer.

"Well that, is worth a bit more don't you think," she said with a tone as airily as a Besilesk could make. Sev had nearly had enough. All of the tiptoeing around the point was getting annoying. He stepped closer to the bar leaning in closer.

"Not worth as much as your life," he grumbled. Keilbourn jabbed his elbow into Sev's stomach, pushing him back, then reached into his pocket and pulled out another handful of credits. The Besalisk scooped up the currency before motioning for Keilbourn to lean in closer again.

"Plenty of the old mine workers and shipping firms come in here and complain about the day. Recently the complaints from the firms are about the Empire seizing the collection of ore from one of the only three functioning veins. They'd been consolidating the stuff then storing it in a warehouse just out of the crater." Keilbourn nodded, taking in the information. He leaned back as he lifted his mug and drank the beverage.

"Where's the mine?" Sev asked. The Besalisk looked to the other similar spacer with her big gold eyes.

"West from here, hard to miss."

Chapter 11

Keilbourn landed the freighter just down from the hill top. After a short march, the two came to a dust covered rock hill. Concordia was once a lush agricultural settlement though when Mandalorians from Mandalore found traces of the coveted ore, Beskar, in the earth, they wiped away the green of the planet and dug deep into the earth. Once bright green, the planet was now mostly a dustbowl with the occasional prairie. The sun burned high and hot above them as they hunkered down on the top of the hill, gaining a view of the vast crater down the other side. Just as the Besalisk had told them, a temporary warehouse had been established at the edge of the crater. What immediately caught their eyes was the large spider-like structure of machinery drilling into the mine. The drilling vessel comprised of four long extensions which secured themselves in the ground around the edge of the crater. The jointed legs met together to a body where the vessel was controlled. Protruding from the underside was a laser drill which tore through the planet's layers. The resounding thrum of the laser boomed through the air which glowed bright green from the laser's emission. Keilbourn, who observed the view from the top of the hill, was reminded of a CIS Spider Walker, a common sight on the battlefield during the war. Sev scoped the scene with an X-45 Sniper blaster. The former Commando Marksman had eyed the rifle as they chose their gear. The short barrel and compact stock was in the Sniper's favor, falling in love with the blaster the moment he saw it. Though it was only a sporting rifle, the Commando would enjoy modifying it to pure perfection. The Scope allowed Sev to clearly see the workers behind the windows of the vessel.

"No eyes on security," Sev muttered.

"I don't buy it," Keilbourn sighed, still looking out to the warehouse. "If it's the Empire, then someone's there," he grumbled. Sev continued to look, till finally a figure emerged from around a corner encased in white armor. The Clone held a DC-15A upright against his shoulder.

"Eyes on a sentry," he said.

"So minimal security," this'll be easy.

"So how should we do this then?" Sev asked as he emerged from behind his rifle. Keilbourn stared out at the crater before sighing again.

"I've been thinking," he said. Sev turned to face him. "The amount we need for our own armor, that's easily packed in a bag to let us sneak out." He paused looking out over the crater again. "Quick and quiet," he added. "But what if we did some good?" Sev stared at the former ARC with a frown.

"How so?"

"All that Beskar for the Empire, I don't like it. We move in, take what all we can load into the ship and then light the place up." Sev grinned as he shouldered his X-45.

"I like being the good guys."

Concordia's sun dropped, taking its light with it. No sound could be heard over the stillness of the night, save the roar of the engines of the Dynamic-class Freighter. The ship drifted high beyond sight of the crater. The ramp was lowered allowing Sev an open window to operate. The former Commando laid on his stomach on the edge of the deck of the freighter with his X-45 aimed out the open ramp. In their ears, were tiny comlink devices Keilbourn had found in his equipment store.

"In position," Sev muttered.

"Going in for the descent," Keilbourn announced. The blast of chill flooded over the Commando was he laid in wait for his opportunity. The Freighter banked, turning sharply above the crater. Sev watched as the cover of clouds rose from his sight, and the heavily lit crater came into focus. The Freighter continued to steadily drop like an elevator in the shaft. As the ship lowered, Sev finally saw his targets. Standing in attention before the doors of the storehouse were three of the Clones, armed and ready to shoot down trespassers. Sev scoped in on them, controlling his breathing before expertly pulling the trigger. A beam struck from far above the Clones, striking the Trooper to the left down first. In shock, the middle Clone caught a glimpse of the sizzling dark hole the blaster left on his comrade's chest plate before collapsing from a similar shot. The Clone to the right dropped to the ground, scrambling to crawl into cover around the corner. As the Trooper leapt, he cried out before dropping dead with a blaster mark on his back.

"Sentries down," Sev announced. The freighter finally reached just feet above the ground. Sev jumped to his feet, sliding his X-45 down the deck before leaping from the ramp onto the hard ground. "Moving in for phase two," he grunted as he speedily snuck up to the storehouse. The building itself was just bigger than the ship. He approached the large sliding doors of the building as he reached into his belt and extracted an incendiary slicing ribbon. A tool of Keilbourn's own design, the former Commando tossed the adhesive head of the ISR which stuck firmly to the top of the large seal in between the doors. Sev grinned as just by patting down the rest of the ribbon on the seal, the device stuck perfectly. In just seconds, steam and a slight bubbling could be heard as the metal of the doors corroded away. Keilbourn stealthily slipped down the open ramp with his GLC Firelancer leveled. "Nice toy," Sev grunted.

"Thought it'd come in handy someday," Keilbourn replied casually. Before long, the ribbon had melted away and a gap had been melted between the slabs of metal. Sev stepped forward and tried to pull the door to the side with his hands, using the leverage of his weight; but the door wouldn't move. Keilbourn then squeezed inside the building. Within seconds, the mechanism of the large doors creaked as the metal doors slid open. Over the grind of metal, footsteps were heard approaching the two armed former Spec Ops Clones. A small patrol of Troopers emerged from the stacks and caches of crates. Without hesitation, Sev and Keilbourn leveled their blasters, firing away at the Clones. They managed to drop two, though the remaining five scattered among the crates. "This place is gonna get hot very soon," Keilbourn called out as he stalked through the crates ready to fire on any sign of movement.

"Agreed, I love it," Sev jeered. The former Commando fired off a quick burst, dropping a Trooper. Another had spun away into cover behind a stack of crates. Sev snuck up to his position before overhearing the aggravated squelch of his voice.

"-Back up, send them in!" Sev rounded the corner blasting him down. As he moved on, he keyed his com.

"We got reinforcements coming in here," Sev called out.

"We need to start phase three then," the former ARC answered. Sev agreed then started back down to the front of the storehouse. There he found Keilbourn, who already hefted a crate.  
"We clear?" Sev inquired.  
"Doubt it," the former ARC groaned. He marched to the ramp of the freighter then placed the crate down. As the ARC turned away, the ramp's conveyer function activated, carrying the cargo into the ship, over the deck and into the open cargo hold across from the ramp. As Keilbourn doubled back for his third crate, Sev marched past him with his first. Back and forth the two went, taking a combined thirty crates. As Keilbourn reached down for another, a bolt nearly struck his hand. Keilbourn dropped behind the crate dodging more fire. The former ARC reached for his blaster, firing blindly over the crate. By hearing the resounding outcry, he knew he had gotten him. Sev came back for his next crate, barely breaking a sweat from the labor.

"How much more can she take?" he asked as Keilbourn rose to his feet and hefted another.

"Oh, I'd say maybe ten more," he said casually. Sev laughed. Just seconds ago, his brother was nearly shot dead, and he could still take anything as casual as if it were a training drill. Sev rushed to the ramp again. After dropping the crate, the distinct hum of engines hung over the whirr of the Freighter. Sev knew the engines all too well, having ridden in LAAT Gunships throughout the entirety of his life. The former Commando glanced up, fighting to see through the haze of dust which was thrown in the air by the incoming Gunship. A hail of bolts soared through the air nearly striking him. Sev staggered his charge back into the storehouse. He jumped behind a tower of crates. Keilbourn followed his lead without hesitation. "What is it?" he inquired.

"Company," Sev answered. "And they don't shoot like normal Shinies." Keilbourn peeked just around his cover just in time to hear a clutter of footsteps followed by an adrenaline inducing sight.

"Oh feirfek," he groaned. "These guys." Sev frowned as he peered around to see a formation of four Troopers. Dubbed as Covert Ops Troopers, they had a distinct specialty, hunt down defectors. The Troopers wearing dark grey armor, with tan camouflage on the domes of their helmets, shins, chests and shoulders were no joke. Specially trained by ARCs, they were well learned in the tactics of Commandos and the hunting thereof. Sev before had had dealings with these Troopers. In the barracks while off duty their mentality was bold, and arrogant; they were better than you because they could kill you. To Scorch and Sev, they were especially loathsome. Skillfully, they poured into the storehouse, single filed, with DC-15S, leveled, sticking to the wall of the building. Sev keyed his com.

"Keilbourn, secure our cargo, then come back for phase four, I'll take care of these shiks," Sev whispered. Keilbourn frowned in hesitation.

"You sure?"

"Damn sure," Sev growled as he crept from his cover and snuck through the crates. Keilbourn waited before charging out into the night and into the ship. He locked the airlocks surrounding the entry floor of the freighter before charging out and into the storehouse again. As he marched, he reached to his belt, extracting a handheld demo charge. He ran around a corner of crates before finding what he wanted. Parked up against the wall to the left was a cargo, hover transporter. The small vehicle lay dormant and would suit his needs just fine.

Sev heard what he was searching for. Just beyond the two rows of crates separating him away was the procession of Covert Op Troopers. The former Commando reached into his belt and extracted a thermal detonator. He pressed down the switch before lobbing it over the aisle of crates.

"Grenade, get down!" he heard them cry out. The blast sounded throughout the metal walls of the building, as the shrapnel sliced through the air, causing Sev to dive behind the crates. Sev quickly, though quietly, rose to his feet and snuck to the edge of the aisle. Slowly, he reached to his boot for his knife. Patiently and expertly he waited for just the right time. The grenade had made them jumpy, almost careless. Now fueled by rage and a false sense of dominance, they charged down to the edge. Sev moved fast, driving the blade of his dagger in between the plates of the lead Trooper's chest plate and chin. The Trooper shook as he bled out profusely from the wound to the neck. Sev then spun facing the dead Trooper then pushing him away and into the Trooper behind him. Dazed and shocked, the Trooper had no chance to defend against Sev's slice to the neck. The Trooper reached to the wound, as he dropped to the floor in a puddle of his own blood. The remaining three Troopers behind however, were ready. They leveled their blasters firing single shots at a time. Sev was able to draw his pistol just fast enough to down the middle Trooper, but wasn't fast enough for the others. One of the Troopers shots struck the former Commando in the shoulder. Sev grunted as he dived around the corner of the crates. The two remaining Troopers followed after their prey.

With his dagger still in his hand, Sev considered his options. He charged down the aisle to where the crates jutted from the stacks, supplying him with cover. Sev sheathed his dagger and readied his pistol. He reached to his belt again, extracting a flash-band grenade. He primed it before lobbing it again to where his targets rounded the corner.

"Na-uh, nice try," the Trooper taunted as he kicked the grenade back down the aisle. It went off just past the stack Sev hid behind. The resounding explosion of light struck him, nearly burning away his vision with the intense flash. The pop rang in his ears, disorienting him completely. Sev collapsed to his knees trying to regain focus. The Trooper's blow to the head, however, didn't help. Sev was gruffly dragged up against the aisle. Suddenly, the two blurred and warped images of the Covert Ops Troopers approached, wrenching off Sev's half mask. Over the decreasing ring, Sev heard their voices.

"Well, look at this, a Go-bandit," one of them jeered. Another drove his fist into Sev's stomach. The hit felt no more than a pound to the conditioned Commando.

"So what's your designation?" the other demanded. He leveled his DC-15S to Sev's temple.

"Tell us now," the Trooper shouted.

"Go farkle yourself," Sev slurred, pretending to still be dazed by the flash-bang. The Troopers both struck him with their blasters.

"You wanna try again you Go-bandit Slime?" the Trooper snarled.

"Yeah, my turn." Sev waited for them to strike again. Now free from the point of the Trooper's blaster, Sev swept his leg, knocking them to the floor. The former Commando stomped down on one of the downed Trooper's neck with his boot. The snap was heard over the gargling of the dead Clone. The other regained his footing and readied for Sev's next strike. Sev threw a punch which was easily smacked away with the gauntlet of the Trooper's arm. The Clone went in for a strike which Sev was able to deflect and follow through. He threw his elbow into the Trooper's helmet, knocking him back and dazing him; not ready for the barrage of fists coming his way. The Trooper felt most of the blows through his armor, but recovered. He grabbed Sev's wrist with one hand and threw an elbow to his stomach with the other. Sev keeled over slightly, allowing for the Trooper to drive his knee up. The former Commando however saw it coming, pushing it away with his free hand. With the same arm, he then wrapped it around the waist of the Trooper, tackling him to the floor. The Trooper reacted; driving his elbow into Sev's back, causing him to release his grip. The Trooper then mounted the former Commando from behind, locking him in a hold by the neck. Sev struggled for breath as he was strangled by this hold. Finally, Sev gained enough momentum to toss the Trooper over his back. His armor thudded on the floor as he landed flat on his back. With a groan, the Trooper struggled to get up, though was quickly overpowered. Sev dragged him to his knees, holding the Trooper by his neck. "Designation number RC-1207," the former Commando growled. He stared menacingly into the black visor of the Trooper's grey helmet.

"Delta?" he helplessly choked out of a strained voice. Sev glared down at the Trooper with hate.

"Not anymore." With a forceful flick of his wrists, the Trooper's neck snapped from within the Mandalorian's grip.

"What happened to you?" Keilbourn asked as Sev emerged from the aisles and to the front. His face was bleeding from cuts he had received from his brawl with the Covert Ops Trooper.

"Oh, its nothing," Sev grunted. Suddenly another burst of blaster fire erupted from the stacks. Sev and Keilbourn snapped back into a defensive military formation, facing the Clone Troopers still hiding inside from the initial infiltration with their blasters raised. They shot off response suppressive fire as they backed out of the storehouse.

"Phase four is set and primed by the way," Keilbourn called out over the firefight. They reached the ramp, covering each other as they took turns turning away from the firefight and marching up the ramp. With the ramp still down, Keilbourn ran down the corridors to the cockpit while Sev continued to exchange fire. "Sev close the blasted ramp!" Keilbourn demanded.

"Ha, no way," Sev grunted. "I'm having way too much fun." He fired another burst from his Scalphunter, dropping another two of the Troopers. As the Freighter began to rise from the ground, the ramp too folded up.

"Buzz kill," Sev called out over his com. He strode down the corridor, placing his Scalphunter down on one of the tables in the main hold before continuing to the cockpit. Through the window, he saw Keilbourn behind the glowing blue controls, ascending the ship. What soon came into view was the large drilling vessel.

"Good bye phase five," Keilbourn jeered as he triggered the ships cannons. The large bolts struck the structure, exploding in on impact. The night sky lit up from the blast as metal debris rained down. Just as planned, the weak structure of land beneath it caved in by the collapse of burning metal, clogging the crater. Keilbourn angled the ship away, just a half mile away from the storehouse. With a press of a button on a handheld device, a pop was all that could be heard from inside the ship as it flew away, through the dark clouds and atmosphere, back into the deep vacuum of space.

Chapter 12

Arvon's gratitude to the two new Mandalorians' errand was shown with not only a payment for the supply, but the offer of smithing their armor for free. The process of making Beskar armor was extensive when done right, which could only be accomplished in the hands of a Mandalorian craftsman. The Craftsman told them it would take a week, which gave Sev and Keilbourn a lot of free time. Just for something to do, Sev had often decided to take the Freighter to the spaceports found on the neighboring planet of Onderon. With their earned money, Sev purchased many provisions for their new home. Though the errand was simple and safe, he always carried his sidearm. Keilbourn on the other hand, often offered to stay put. Sev didn't quite know what Keilbourn's time was spent on, though to the small handful of Clansmen whom loitered about the fighting circle for most of their days, his purpose was not impossible to discover. A particular combatant that would brawl in the circle was a slim Mandalorian, donning her brilliantly burning red armor around her legs was a shroud which did nothing to hinder her fast, well coordinated movements. Keilbourn would often seat himself down at the top of one of the stands and just watch the fights. He knew there were other things he could engage in doing, little chores to better their living, but he couldn't help but enjoy watching this particular Mandalorian fight. As he watched the fight, he saw her finishing strike, a throw down to the dirt with the force of her legs. With a groan and his face in the dirt, the Mandalorian smacked the ground repeatedly. The warrior in red released him and with a graceful bow, accepted the cheers and praise of the onlookers. Keilbourn grinned widely from ear to ear.

"She's good aint she," the young familiar voice spoke. Keilbourn stood up and looked over to see Cautiss standing with his helmet gripped in his hands.

"Hasn't lost yet," the former ARC replied. "Got to respect a woman like that." Cautiss smirked as he looked from Keilbourn, down to the fighting circle, watching the warrior in red clamber out of the fighting circle.

"Yeah, well keep that in mind. I like your brother so I'm telling you now," Cautiss said stiffly as he stepped up closer to Keilbourn. "Iella is off limits," he snarled.

"Pretty name too," Keilbourn replied as he watched her walk away.

"Hey, you put hands on my cousin," he warned. He quickly drew a dagger from the back of his belt and held the blade up in his own face. "And I'll cut them off," he finished. Cautiss turned away slowly as he bounded down the stands. Keilbourn left the stands too, deciding to visit Arvon. Upon entering, the craftsman grunted a welcome as he focused on pounding out the finishing shape of a chest plate.

"Wow, good progress," he admired as he observed the work.

"Sev's is in the finishing vault," Arvon said as he pointed to the metal box. Keilbourn leaned up against the wall as he watched the Mandalorian work.

"What's Cautiss' story?" he asked. Arvon chortled as he continued his work.

"First and last born of the Chief. Cautiss is one of the swiftest fighters I've ever seen, and he knows it and it gets to his head sometimes, how he became Lead Contender." Keilbourn frowned at the term. He'd heard it a few times, though the true nature was still misunderstood.

"What exactly is that?"

"What, Lead Contender?" Arvon asked with raised eyebrows. "Lead Contender is the next in line of Clan leadership. You become Lead Contender by challenging the Lead Contender. Keilbourn's eyes widened in surprise.

"So Sev is next in line then?"

"If he wanted, he could challenge Vesu as Clan Chief." Keilbourn smiled fondly. "There's a lot of us curious to see if he'll do it," Arvon added with another chortle. Keilbourn shook his head. Though he was still learning about the former Commando, he knew at least enough to say he was not power hungry. Arvon scoffed as he continued his work. "Too bad, it'd be a good fight." Keilbourn cleared his throat out uncomfortably as he considered asking his next inquiry.

"Uh, wha-what about his cousin?" Arvon scoffed again not turning to face Keilbourn, instead taking a closer look at his work.

"Iella, she's a quiet girl. Vesu took her in when her father was killed and her mother died of a sickness. Her Dad used to venture a lot. Vesu was mostly her father figure for most of her life. He took it very hard when his sister died."

"I bet," Keilbourn sighed.

Chapter 13

Clan Ordo was family. Though not all came from the same bloodline, or even in some cases, the same species, everyone of the Mandalorians who bore the clan's symbol on their shoulder plate, were devoted and would defend each other no matter the cost. This display of affection for each was encouraged by occasional cookouts. Around the pavilion found in the corner of the compound was the gathering of Mandalorian clansmen. None wore their full armor, a sign of relaxation and time for personal connections. Sev and Keilbourn left their hut and strolled to the corner of the compound, not quite sure what to expect. It just seemed so uncharacteristic of the warrior race to engage in such personal gatherings; then again, the both of them weren't used to the surroundings of a conventional family. Under the pavilion, a large pit burned hot with flames licking and cooking the carcass of a Boma. Its fatty meat was made it a delectable meal, though the danger of hunting one was dangerous, even for a Mandalorian. On a table next to the pavilion, an assortment of strange vegetables steamed in bowls. All about the pavilion, Mandalorians, ate, laughed and drank with glee. The both of them moved straight to the pavilion which lofted with a succulent aroma. Sev dove in, slicing out a chunk of the meat. Suddenly, Keilbourn found himself frozen in his place. Iella, the Mandalorian in red armor stepped up to the pavilion, admiring the cooked meat.

"That's uh, quite a beast," Keilbourn said after clearing his throat.

"Yeah, it sure was," Iella said boastfully.

"Your hunt?" Keilbourn flustered. The Mandalorian turned her head to face him. She was at least twenty-four. Her green eyes shone brilliantly from behind her deep black eyelashes. Her hair was short, just coming down to her pronounced, soft cheeks. Her lips narrowed into a stern scowl.

"Is that such a surprise?" she asked. Keilbourn couldn't stop himself from smiling. At first his attraction to her came from just watching her outstanding performance in the fighting circle, but her face was just as beautiful as her swift executions of her combatants. The warm glow of the fire accented her beauty even more.

"Course not," he replied coolly. She was about to turn away, before the flustered ARC struggled for his next move. "Keilbourn, he offered. She turned to face him again. Her eyebrows cocked at him.

"Yeah I know, Cautiss told me about you," she replied.

"Oh really?" he said with a laugh. "What'd he say?" Iella looked him up and down before looking back up at the former ARC. Though she was only just over five' three, the warrior didn't lack in intimidation. Her hard stern expression relaxed ever so slightly, allowing a tiny smirk to curve her lips.

"He said you're quick on the draw," she replied. Flustered and unable to do any more, Keilbourn said nothing as he got lost in her brilliant green eyes. She turned away again and continued down to blend with the rest of the clan. Keilbourn continued to stand there stupidly. It took the massive hand of the Mandalorian Craftsman to shake him back to reality.

"Forget about it Keilbourn," he chortled. "Iella has been suitable to marry for years now." Keilbourn looked up to Arvon with an almost pathetic look on his face.

"How come no one's claimed her yet?" he asked.

"Oh many have tried," Arvon laughed. "She just turns them down." Keilbourn shook his head trying to shake the thought from his mind, though her enchanting image wouldn't leave. "Anyway, you and Sev should stop by after tomorrow morning. It's time we get you guys out of those ridiculous clothes," he scoffed. Keilbourn laughed as he grasped the Craftsman's massive wrist, and then slid his grip to his proportionate wrist.

Chapter 14

High above, the sun had burned hot, radiating off of the hard, tough ground of Ambria's desert landscape. Though now in the latter half of the planet's day cycle, the sun had dropped low, spilling an orange tinge in the darkening sky. The air was now growing cooler as small gusts of a dry breeze flowed brutally. Sev however, barely felt any discomfort from the inside of his very own Beskar. He absolutely loved the full armor. It reminded him of his Katarn armor he'd worn through the entirety of the Clone Wars. The Mandalorian jumped back and forth on the balls of his feet, quickly jabbing the air around him in excitement. The view provided to him through his HUD was clear and easily tweaked to his favor. He hadn't been able to calibrate anything just yet, upload the sighting for his blaster's scopes; that would have to be done later. At the moment, Keilbourn and him just wanted a raw test run of the armor before truly making it their own. The former ARC bounded down the ramp of the freighter landed behind Sev. He turned to check on his companion, smirking with glee.

"Looking good, Brother," Sev exclaimed. He saw Keilbourn wearing armor of a shaded almost dirty grey looking silver, shiny and brand new. The armor was of the traditional design of most Mandalorian warriors, and they both wore it proudly. Sev already had plans for his armor, as Keilbourn too was contemplating the statement his armor would make.

"Alright, we're out here in the middle of nowhere," Keilbourn grumbled with a look around the barren environment of Ambria. "Where should we start?"

"Mobility test," Sev declared as he pointed out with his finger to a formation of crags and rocks nearly a mile away. Keilbourn zoomed in on the designated zone with his HUD.

"Race then?"

"Go!" Sev struck hard, digging into the rough ground with his feet, charging down the desert with Keilbourn hot on his trail. Dust kicked up behind them with every splash of a footfall. Sev full on charged in a straight line, directed to the formations. His breathing was stable; such was a skill of an exceptional marksman. Keilbourn too however, had excellent endurance and stamina, allowing him to stay close up with his comrade, nearly coming neck to neck with him. The both of them dug aggressively into the ground with every stomp of their armored feet. The armor was unquestionably heavy, a problem for many, though only a slight discomfort for the former Spec Ops Clones. It however was surprisingly agile, taking away the sacrifice of full flexibility as most sets of armor did. As the two closed in on the last fourth of the mile, Keilbourn reached into his reserves for an extra boost of endurance. Though he didn't need it to finish, he did if he wanted to punish Sev. From the corner of his eye, the former Commando caught a glimpse of his comrade getting closer. His competitive need kicked in reaching into his own reserves, but as they reached the crag, Keilbourn pulled ahead. In a desperate attempt to win, Sev launched from the ground, extending to reach first but Keilbourn still touched the closest stone pillar. Sev skidded on the rough ground, which he recovered from by rolling into a low crouch. With a controlled pant, Keilbourn gloated.

"I win," he laughed.

"It's the armor, still getting used to it," Sev wheezed.

"Uh, huh," he replied sarcastically. "I kicked your sheb and you know it," Keilbourn gloated. Sev looked out into the strange formations of rocks and crags which seemed to grow like trees from the desert floor.

"Next is agility," Sev replied with a glare, waving out his hand to the jumbled formations of inter looping stones. Keilbourn scoffed as he placed himself at Sev's imaginary starting line. The two of them dropped to a stance, ready to bound through the obstacles. The former Commando gruffly yelled out, "Go!" causing them both to launch forward. The two of them could only advance for a few yards before having to clamber over a root of rock jutting from the hard ground. Sev dropped to a roll which he then used to slide under a small space provided by an arch of stone. Keilbourn however leapt onto the barricade and slid across the top, back onto the ground, which to his surprise, dropped off into a steep, wide, canyonous rut. The former ARC managed to recompose his stumble into a well collected roll. Sev however had seen the drop-off coming and quickly snatched the ledged of the drop. He clambered back onto the edge and perched himself on the small provided ground. Across the rut were posts of stone formations. With a leap, Sev clung onto the post pulling himself up onto the small uneven surface of the post. One by one, he leapt from post to post, staying neck and neck with his comrade below him in the rut. As he landed on the final post across the twenty foot crevice, Keilbourn passed by it with sturdy slam into the stack with his fist. The slam shook the stack, throwing Sev off balance. He fell down hard on the ground. Keilbourn snickered as he charged fast to the steep wall which he ran up before leaping to catch the ledge and pull himself up. Sev was only feet behind as he too ran up the wall. As he pulled himself up, he felt the strain of his muscles and caught sight of Keilbourn continuing down the forest of stone formations. Sev rolled on his side to his feet before following. Keilbourn continued down the canyon with a wide grin on his face. From behind, Sev was closing in. As the sly former Commando approached his brother, he reached out to trample him. Suddenly to both of their surprise, a heavy rumble thundered above their heads as a fat, flat, metal body soared through the now even darker sky; illuminated only with a tiny red glow. The two Mandalorians saw three large round thrusters burning hot and green. The three glows shrunk as the craft gained distance, and fast. The two glanced to each other in confusion.

"What do you make of that?" Sev asked.

"Don't think I've seen that ship before," Keilbourn replied. "Let's take a look." The former ARC backed away before launching forward on the hard ground, gaining the momentum needed. He charged up the rock wall face for a few steps before jumping again for the ledge. Sev followed suit. They both rolled to their feet, approaching the foot of a hill. They both stealthily strode up the hill, staying low as they reached the top. From down on the opposite side of the hill, small glows of light dotted a tiny village below. The assembly of small huts had been collected inside a large rounded imprint ten feet into the hard rock ground. The suspicious craft had slowed, hovering just above the roofs of the low huts. The two watched as large floodlights ignited from the belly of the flat craft. Nearly the entire area of the imprint was illuminated harshly. Cables dropped from the craft with a mysterious lump dropping in the shadows. It wasn't until the figures reached the ground and into the floodlights that Sev's sharp eye identified the figure.

"Zygerrians," he growled; balling his fist. The feline like creatures stalked swiftly on the ground, producing batons from their belts. In horror they watched as the Zygerrians kicked in doors of the huts and stormed inside. Shrieks and cries shrilled in the cool dusk air. After moments, an alarm sounded from below in the village. The large, broad creatures cruelly dragged Twi'lek inhabitants from their homes. The multi colored beings struggled against the strong Zygerrians; only to be subdued by jabs of the batons. The Twi'lek's back arched in as it writhed in pain from the sudden shock from the baton's end. The Twi'lek however rose back to his feet and tried to charge the intruder. The Zygerrian however thrust his baton again, shocking the alien with more malice than before. Before long, the Twi'lek's body went limp as smoke rose from its sizzling body.

"He just fried him," Keilbourn observed angrily.

"Then lets return the favor," Sev snarled. He tossed his legs over the edge sliding down the hillside on his lower back. Keilbourn followed, staying low as Sev did as they reached the bottom and stealthily stalked into the imprint. From above, they saw a frightened Twi'lek run around the corner of the hut closest to them. From behind, a Zygerrian exploded in pursuit. With a quick draw of his 434 blaster pistol, he mercilessly dropped the fur covered Zygerrian. The Twi'lek child shrieked in panic as Keilbourn jumped in front of the head-tailed alien child. Keilbourn dropped to his knees getting in close.

"Its alright," he consoled her. As he looked into her brown eyes, grief overwhelmed him as he thought of the young Mirialan Jedi whom they had rescued on Contruum nearly a week ago. Quickly he shook the thoughts away. He raised his gloved finger up to where his mouth would be from behind his helmet. As the Twi'lek child nodded slowly, her head-tails bobbed slightly. Keilboun snapped to his feet behind his brother who scanned the open courtyard in the heart of the imprint. All about the village, cries of terror followed the scramble of Twi'leks, male and female, grown and young. As each was rounded by the Zygerrians, the beasts fired their blasters, shooting wide blue emissions which stunned the Twi'lek captives into unconsciousness. Sev and Keilbourn, with blaster pistols drawn, ducked behind cover as they zigzagged their way through out the maze of huts in the cramped village. At every turn where they found the Zygerrians cornering a Twi'lek, they without hesitation blasted it down. Another of the feline beasts rounded the corner to investigate, seeing only the flash of Sev's blade as he swiped his neck. The creature gurgled as he fell to his knees, gripping his gushing wound. Keilbourn looked up to the sky at the rumble of the Zygerrian craft's engines, as it ascended higher into the ground to allow the arrival of two Aurore-class freighters which began to descend. The freighter's wings edged with thrusters rotated pointing the boosters down. Keilbourn and Sev both stormed into the courtyard with their blasters leveled, carefully firing away at the unaware Zygerrians. Few dropped dead before they began to aim their own blasters. The two Commandos ducked and weaved and dodged into cover, avoiding the deadly bolts. Keilbourn leapt from his cover; tackling down one of the felines, subduing him quickly with his blade. Sev covered his brother, blasting down any Zygerrian that attempted to kill him. The craft lowered down to the ground followed by the drop of the boarding ramp at the rear of the freighter. Keilbourn and Sev both remembered the thermal detonators each had carried with them just in case. With the surrounding Zygerrians dead, the two of them primed the small grenades before lobbing them into the hold of the ship. Finally aware of what was happening, the pilot rose from the ground, attempting to bail from the village. The craft only gained feet of air before exploding into a brilliant ball of flaming metal. Debris rained down on the village as the two of Mandalorians dragged the Twi'lek's out of harm's way. Realizing their defeat, the remaining Zygerrians reluctantly snarled in retreat, clambering up to the roofs of the huts to catch the cables of the flat ship, carrying away those that were lucky enough to attach the cable to their harnesses before fleeing. The village still rang with the alarm, though the shrieking stopped. Many Twi'leks slowly arose from hiding, approaching the two broad Mandalorians. A single being stepped up to them. He was old with wrinkles creasing his face. His head-tails were wrapped around his shoulders as he hobbled up to them wearing robes, leaning on his cane.

"Thank you, warriors," he said with bravado in his ragged, old voice. "You've just saved this village much grief." The elder's words were then drained out as snarling and closed in accompanied with the scrape of dragging metal on the hard ground. Three angered Twi'leks dragged a wounded Zygerrian into the midst of the frightened, angered Twi'lek village. The alien was covered in fur except for his face which was narrow and rough. From his chin, spikes jutted out menacingly. His pointed ears twitched as the Twi'leks holding him captive threw a quick punch. He wore a spacing uniform with bandoliers draped across his torso. Sev glowered at him recognizing the common appearance of a Slaver. The former Commando was well familiar with hostiles whom profited in the horrible trade. Through what he'd seen throughout the four years of the war, he despised any that practiced the industry. In the corner, with her husband's dead smoldering body in her arms, a woman sobbed and shrieked in anguish. Sev watched as she cried over her loss. A young Twi'lek male's eyes watered heavily before a snarl erupted from his voice and charged at the wounded Zygerrian. In a flurry of fists and kicks, he beat the feline-like alien. Few Twi'leks struggled to pull him away from their prisoner. "Be still Quiron," the elder commanded. Reluctantly, the young male ceased his beatings on the subdued Zygerrian. Sev and Keilbourn watched the young Twi'lek with sympathy. Both knew the pain of loss and the satisfaction of revenge. Had it been their call, they'd have handed the young male a weapon and suggested some Mandalorian justice. But as they were the outsiders and the elder was in charge, they stayed quiet.

"Do you have much trouble here?" Keilbourn inquired as he turned away from the pair of grievers who held the dead body. The elder tilted his old head to the side and back as he gave a rough rumble in his throat.

"Our village, no. There were others however," he said in sorrow.

"Other villages?" Sev asked.

"Yes. Our warriors had departed just this week to go and investigate the others," the elder said. Sev glanced to his brother then back to the aged Twi'lek.

"Then is there anything we can do?" The Twi'lek shook his head.

"No, you may leave with our thanks and knowing that you have friends here." The elder smiled as did many of the other villagers. Sev and Keilbourn grinned back at them from behind their helmets. Before long they'd turned away and left. Nearly an hour had past and the two Mandalorians walked through the door to their hut. It was nearly morning on Dxun as they'd housed the freighter in the slot between the canvas of trees just outside of the Mandalorian compound. Keilbourn removed his helmet, placing it on one of the tables inside their home.

"Well, I say test successful," he mused. Sev stepped inside lowering himself onto a chair inside. He too removed his helmet, revealing the glower which had seized his face as he stared at the ground. Keilbourn frowned as he watched Sev. "You haven't said anything since we'd left. Are you okay?" Keilbourn asked.

"I hate Slavers," Sev growled low in his tone. Keilbourn crossed his arms over his chest and sighed.

"Me too, despicable slime," he spat. "And I wouldn't mind crushing a few more of their skulls either," he added with a chuckle. Sev rose from the chair and turned away, retreating to his room as Keilbourn watched in concern.

Chapter 15

Keilbourn opened the finishing box they'd installed into their home. The cool pressurized steam spouted from the crack of the open door. One by one Keilbourn extracted each plat of his now tan colored Beskar armor. The entire collection of plates had been stained in the hue which the former ARC decided on. He placed the plates onto display pedestals in his work corner. In the other corner, Sev had established his own pedestals with his own armor which he had stained a deep black. The shining plates glistened in the lighting of their hut. The former Commando had announced just an hour ago he was going out to collect some paint. Keilbourn had frowned as he stepped out as he glanced over at the collection of contained colors sprawled all across the floor. Sev's mood had improved throughout the past few days. He spent a lot of his time outside of the compound in the jungle. Keilbourn as usual spent his time at the fighting circle. Once or twice, the Chief's feisty niece, Iella, caught his gaze, which the former ARC would quickly break away. As Keilbourn reached out for his selected dark blue coloring, he thought of the warrior in her brilliant red armor. A smile spread on his mouth as he imaged her black hair and green eyes which accented her soft yet strong face. As if in a daze, he reached over to his side and slid a sheet of paper before him. Arvon had allowed him to borrow a transcription of ancient characters of Mando'a script. Keilbourn observed the sheet, identifying the characters he desired. With the navy blue coloring, Keilbourn covered the edges of the plates. Where the wrists, neckline, shoulder blades, waist line and various edges on the legs were once tan, the dark navy blue edged the plates. Satisfied with the beginning of his design, Keilbourn moved in closer to the armor to gain a better view of the pedestal. With hesitation, Keilbourn fidgeted with the brush in his hand. He nearly began to touch the brush to the tan armor before backing away again to study the script. The former ARC had learned the way of the Mandalorians from his trainer Jango Fett, and occasionally Walon Vau. However, the ancient alphabetical characters were a new concept to him. Still not entirely satisfied, Keilbourn leaned back in on the plates. Slowly, and with an immensely steady hand, Keilbourn made his first stroke. Stroke by stroke, he transcribed the ancient script onto the plates, making the characters appear to spread from the bold foundation of the edging. Periodically, Keilbourn pulled away from the armor to refer to the old sheets. As he leaned in again to continue painting the narrow characters, a creak came from the door of their hut as a sliver of light shone from behind, quickly growing. Keilbourn quickly jumped back from the plates sighed deeply. Sev stepped inside wearing the cargo suit which still felt nothing like the body-glove he was used to wearing, though he approved of the militarized jumpsuit. Sev passed the work bench Keilbourn was poised at with a bucket overflowing with red in one hand and his favored X-45 Sniper blaster in the other. All thoughts of Iella suddenly slipped away as Keilbourn's mind made the connection. His comrade's hands were caked in the dark red which slopped from the inside of his bucket. As Sev placed his sniper up against the wall, he gazed over his brother's intriguing design.

"Huh," he exclaimed as his eyes scanned the tan and blue armor. "Well I like the tan," he struggled to say."

"Yeah, and?" Keilbourn pressed on. Sev looked from the armor to his brother.

"And what?"

"Well you've obviously got more to say," Keilbourn frowned. Sev's gaze darted again from his brother to the plates of armor.

"I don't know what to say," he exclaimed as he continued to the corner where his own armor awaited him. He placed down the bucket beside the pedestal.

"Sev?" Keilbourn called out. The former Commando turned his attention once again to Keilbourn. "Have you thought about what we've been discussing?" Sev grabbed the stool next to his bench and swung it under him.

"Keilbourn, we were born for a single reason. Then we were set apart for an even more defined reason."

"I was just considering every choice," Keilbourn replied with a hint of defense in his tone.

"I know," Sev replied in a conceding tone. He then looked to his brother with sincerity in his eyes. "But this is all we know how to do." Keilbourn nodded before meeting Sev's eyes.

"You know it aint a moral job," he said. Sev nodded in agreement.

"But we do have judgment. We don't like the job, we don't take it."

"Bounty hunters," Keilbourn sighed as he shook his head. "Never did like the scum."

"We're different," Sev demanded.

"Pretty dangerous, going out in the open for us," the former ARC observed. "Especially with the Empire out there." Sev chuckled as he indicated the sets of armor with his hands.

"Good thing we got disguises." Keilbourn grinned as he returned his attention to his armor. Sev too turned away to face his black armor plates displayed on the pedestal. Before reaching down to the red in the bucket, Sev scoffed out loud. "Ha, I got it," Sev called out. Keilbourn turned to see what Sev's exclaim was about. "Your freighter, Cuy'val Dar," he suggested. Keilbourn nodded with a grin.

"Those who no longer exist," Keilbourn translated. Sev grinned back before turning again to his armor. Keilbourn curiously leaned away from his plates to observe his brother. He watched from behind as Sev ignored a brush available on his workbench and proceeded to dip his entire hand into the bucket. As he brought his hand out of the thick red immersion, the substance dripped from his finger tips. Keilbourn watched Sev slap his color onto the clean black plates, recreating his grim, disturbed appearance.

Chapter 16

Careful not to create any alarm in the jungle surrounding her, Iella lowered her crimson armored form into the midst of a brush with the dense foliage. From behind her helmet, she scanned the area for her prey. The niece of the Clan Chief always caught a thrill from the hunt, the feeling of being one out in hostile territory, and against a foe which at any moment would end her. Part of her addiction came from the disapproving occasionally expressed from her Uncle Vesu. Mandalorians were indeed warriors, which meant women were trained in combat as well. However, the customs of training differed between males and females. Boys reaching the age of eight would begin training from their fathers in such skills and hunting, combat and survival. Mothers were then charged with training their daughters in the same manner of combat, but also the care of the family. As Iella was the only child of her parents, her training began when she was eight. Her Father was killed on one of the jobs he had been hired for when she was just four. She didn't remember him much, and whenever she tried, her Uncle Vesu replaced the image. It was he who had trained her, and he who had stopped training her a year short of tradition when her mother passed away. Iella then took it upon herself to finish it herself. Not having a mentor was debilitating to most, but she embraced it as an act of independence. She relied on no one; which was how she preferred her hunts, alone. Slowly with her pike gripped in her hands, she shifted through the green. Just a few yards away, a rustle in the brush could be heard as a fat green leathery skinned Boma emerged from the brush. The fat lizard-like creature prodded around the foliage around it. Suddenly a small six legged creature jumped from the midst of the foliage in an attempt to escape. The creature however was no match, nearly getting squashed from the massive pounce as the Boma dived in on it. As it squealed, the Boma ate the small creature. Iella grinned from behind her helmet, steadying her breath. Finally, the right moment had come and he seized it. She leapt from the brush where she had his and charged the Boma swiftly. Adrenaline rushed through her as she sprinted at the giant lizard, pike out in front. Suddenly, something launched out from above her. Three thick, slimy tendrils of vines lashed out, wrapping tightly around her legs and waist. In a panic, she dropped her pike and struggled against the vines' grip. Iella knew she had just become the prey to a Crasna, a carnivorous plant. As she lashed out, a horrible sight befell her. High in the tree tops, four large green pedals opened like a canopy to reveal the light blue tinge of the mouth of the plant, on the edge of the pedals, sharp teeth, stained with dried blood awaited impatiently for its prey. Iella's eyes widened in terror. Nearly four feet away from the impending doom, Iella squeezed her eyes tightly; never before has she ever felt this vulnerable. Suddenly, with a flash of metal, the vines were cut, and she felt herself falling. The fall itself was enough to injure her. But before she reached the ground, a swift figure intersected her, causing her to crash into open arms. Together the two of them rolled through the foliage on the jungle floor. Iella took a moment to gather her sense before realizing she was bound and in the arms of a Mandalorian. His armor was none that she had ever before seen around the compound. The base of the suit was tan with a peculiar dark blue edging.

"You alright?" he asked. Iella finally broke her gaze from the Mandalorian helmet struggling in his arms to break her slimy bonds.

"Let go of me!" she demanded stubbornly, wiggling furiously out of his cradle. He removed his arms, dropping her to the floor. He stood up from his kneel crossing his arms over his chest.

"You know, I think a thanks is in order," he demanded back with taunt in his tone.

"I didn't need your help," she snapped as she continued to struggle out of the wrappings.

"So you want to be plant food," he mused smugly as he reached to his belt and extracted a dagger. He knelt back down and briskly cut away the vines. As he helped her back to her feet, she bitterly muttered in Mando'a.

"Vor'e."

"The pleasure was mine," Keilbourn replied smoothly. "Now why don't we get back to the compound," he suggested. Reluctantly, she nodded. As they trekked down the beaten path through the jungle, they both removed their helmets. Again, Keilbourn was seized by her beauty.

"Ah, the new one," she said bitterly. Keilbourn scoffed in annoyance.

"How long am I the new one for?" he asked.

"Till you're worth a name," Iella replied.

"Ouch," Keilbourn mocked. "Now I'm really going to feed you back to that plant."

"You couldn't if you tried," she threatened.

"I don't know," Keilbourn mused. "I do know most of your moves," he added with a smirk. She grinned back rather uncomfortably as they approached the vegetation covered archway. As she pushed inside through the sheet of vines, Keilbourn stayed behind. "Stupid," he muttered to himself as he slammed his palm to his forehead.

Chapter 17

No one challenges the Empire. Those who defied its rule and order would suffer the consequences; no matter the race or individual. More than anyone on the outside knew, the Galactic Empire's stretch of power, control and influence delved deeper than its predecessor, the Republic. Every corner of the galaxy was slowly being gripped by the Empire; there would soon be nowhere to hide. Still, there were pathetic attempts here and there of resistance, easily quelled by the Empire's force. Such was the mentality of Agent Crax Salar, an Investigation Officer of the Intelligence Bureau of the Imperial Intel. It amazed him, only a span of two weeks since the official declaration of the New Order and already there was resistance; otherwise he never would have been called down to the ravaged surface of Concordia. As the shuttle took him to the mining instillation, Agent Salar looked over the reports filed by the Company Commander of the 258th. His troops had been tasked the security of most of Imperial operations on Concordia. Much of those operations were the acquirement of the planet's most valuable recourse, Beskar. The Commander's report however detailed his troop's failure to protect a vital Mining operation on one of the planet's only three functioning veins. As there were no survivors from the attack, there was none to debrief, though his report came from the compiling of personal footage provided from the troopers' uplink systems. Salar currently skimmed the compilation of visual and audio feeds salvaged from the uplinks. The visuals he had seen were messy, confusing and provided little to no images of the assailants. No doubt about it however, the attack was coordinated, swift and professionally executed. The shuttle began its landing procedures as Salar stood up rigid wearing his grey Imperial uniform. The bright intrusive sun shone through the crack as the ramp lowered, causing the officer to squint and lower his cap. He descended the ramp to be met by a Covert Ops Trooper donning the versatile black and tan, phase 2 Clone Armor. Salar scoffed to himself. He knew as a fact that in just a few short weeks, the entire Empire would be refitted with a new look, a look which would spell fear to those unlucky enough to oppose them. Salar nodded briskly to the Trooper then looked out over the crumpled heap of a ruined metal skeleton. Just to the left of the ruins, a vast was clogged by the metal, scarred ruins of an Imperial Drilling platform. The Intelligence Officer scanned the ruins, with patience slipping as the scene revealed no workable details.

"What, what is this?" he whined. "Where's the warehouse?" The Covert Ops Trooper pointed to the debris of the metal skeleton just next to the crater.

"They demoed the place, pretty thorough guys," he explained. Salar gaped at the ruin then turned to the Trooper.

"So what am I doing here then? There's no evidence to investigate," Salar said impatiently. "And who are you, the guy that failed to do his job?" From behind his helmet, CT-54125 gritted his teeth at the pompous Officer. How dare he, after CT-54125, Captain of the 258th's Covert Ops Troopers, had lost four of his own men. He too had seen the reports and the feeds. He knew his guys had fought hard and well against something clearly well trained. CT-54125 balled his fists, wanting to hit the Officer.

"I'm the guy that makes sure you do yours," he snarled, pointing again to the warehouse ruins. "After you, Sir," he added stiffly. Salar glowered at the insubordinate as he strode to the ruins. Salar already had theories over the attack and just needed evidence to support them. One such theory was a Jedi insurgent, though no bodies from the attack were recovered since the blast had incinerated any possible evidence. Salar crouched down in the scarred remains searching for any sign. "Sir, if I may," CT-54125 interjected. Salar rolled his eyes before rotating his gaze to the trooper. "I do have a theory of this attack."

"Oh well. By all means please share," Salar blurted obnoxiously.

"This storehouse held Beskar ore correct?"

"Yes," Salar mumbled as he continued looking around, with only half of his attention open to CT-54125's words.

"That ore is heavily used by Mandos, and from watching the visuals, they operate like them too."

"If a large shipment of Beskar was stashed anywhere on Mandalore, we would know," Salar boasted boldly.

"Who's to say they're from Mandalore?" the Trooper stated stiffly. Salar stood up from his investigation sighing deeply in aggravation.

"Well there is only one lead we have, their ship." CT-54125 frowned from behind his helmet. "A silhouette match ID of a Dynamic-class Freighter, aint too many of those still flying around out there."

Agent Salar was right. After doing an archives search back at his post on the Imperial Star Destroyer, he found recent spotting of a Dynamic-class Freighter logged in recent reports. One such report was an encounter just outside of Contruume. Using the intel gathered from these encounters and sightings, Salar created a travel radius of the Freighter. Within reasonable distances, he then cross referenced known Mandalorian settlements. The list was short, very short. Only four appeared on the screen of his console in his little work station; Mandalore, Concordia, Onderon and Dxun. Salar grinned maliciously at the short list. Using a separate console, he filed a requisition for four probe droids. If the Freighter made any other trip around those four places, the Empire would know, and would react swiftly.

Chapter 18

Nearly a month had pass since the encounter on Ambria. And both Sev and Keilbourn struggled to kick off their career. Plenty of work was available, though finding moral work was a challenge. On their off time, they both however honed their skills and perfected their equipment. Sev had spent a full ridiculously aggravating day up linking the sights to his weapons to his helmet's HUD. On other days, he tweaked and dissected his weapons, customizing the tiniest of details to the marksman's liking. Along with growing their physicality, each too had growing bonds which they would both enjoy in strengthening. Iella, though after taking some time and witnessing a few matches between he and other cocky combatants in the fighting circle, had grown rather fond of the charming Mandalorian. The fact he was a Clone, sharing a face and voice with millions others also didn't seem to matter. Keilbourn was his own man, and she began to adore that. Sev however would be gone days at a time. He'd finally confided in his brother about his experience on Dathomir. The former Commando's weariness and caution initially overpowered his desires of seeing Barukka again; though there were times where her image was impossible to shake away. Keilbourn literally began to shove him out the door in encouragement. Within the month, he'd made two visits. By the time he'd descended the ramp of the ship from his second visit, Dxun was in its last remaining hours of the day. From behind his helmet, the biggest and most childish grin was on his face as he strutted his way to their hut. Upon entering, he quietly secured the door before turning to see Keilbourn sitting at a workbench, adjusting his Fire Lancer.

"So, how'd it go?" the former ARC grinned smugly. Sev rolled his eyes from behind his helmet. He removed it, unable to hide his grin as he strode straight to his quarters.  
"None of your business," he replied. Without turning to look at him, Keilbourn chuckled. The next night, there'd been no feast, nor did either of them leave. The rain storm dumped heavily with enough force to penetrate the canopy down on the compound. The both of them had retired to their beds. From over the pound of rain, the engine's hum was concealed. A fat, flat, ship with a bulbous front drifted above the canopy. All inside their homesteads were oblivious to the engine, except for Keilbourn, cursed with easily disrupted sleep. The torrential downpour already kept him awake, though the strangely familiar engine attracted his suspicion. He flung his legs over his hammock strung up on opposite walls and leapt to his armor, displayed neatly on his pedestal. After arming up, he checked his weapons and slung his GLC Fire Lancer. Cautiously, he made his way from his bedroom to the front door at the opposite end of the hut. He quietly opened the door, pivoting out on one foot through the opening. The darkness of night and haze of the rainfall was cancelled out by the flood of light which shone from above. Already on the grassy ground, three Zygerrian Slavers stood low, ready to do their work. Without hesitation, Keilbourn drew his pistol and blasted down the closest one. With a shot to the Zygerrian's ponytailed head, he went with a yelp. Keilbourn dodged back into his hut for cover as the Zygerrians returned fire. He popped back out, mercilessly shooting the other two down.

"Slavers in the compound!" he shouted out into the night. "Slavers in the Compound!" More and more descended from the cables which extended from the craft above. Keilbourn continued to shout until Sev came to his side. From across the grassy field, the entire compound erupted in shouts and soon to follow, blaster fire. As the rain poured from above, lasers soared back and forth, crossing the compound. The entire inside of the compound was a battle between various Mandalorian warriors and the vicious Zygerrian Slavers. The ferocious beasts often raided Mandalorian settlements and were well accustomed to combating them. This job however was different. The Zygerrians made no attempt to capture their prey. Sev decided to gain an upper hand. He slung his X-45 sniper over his shoulder, as he sprinted to the compound's wall and climbed its exterior. During his climb a Zygerrian took shots at him which barely missed. Sev struggled to find cover. Instead he reached to his hip and drew his own pistol, firing three trained shots. The bolts were easily dodged by the slaver which was then taken down by a fellow Clansman's Vibrosword. The ramparts above were perfect for his intentions. He shouldered his sniper as he lay down and scoped in from his vantage point. Anywhere he saw a Mandalorian in need; he assisted by placing a bead on the Zygerrian's ugly heads and blasting them off. Keilbourn found himself pitted in a firefight along with three fellow clansmen. Arvon, donning his full brilliant armor, duo wielded a hatchet like weapon and a blaster repeating pistol. As he would gun down a single enemy, he would hack down another which dared to charge at him. Arvon was a brute of a Mandalorian, able to crush skulls if he needed to. All the while as the battle raged, Keilbourn however couldn't stop wondering about Iella. She was nowhere to be found. As he gunned down another Slaver, he laughed at himself. If Iella ever knew he was thinking like that, she'd have tackled him down and put him into a choke-hold; not even considering to let go until he turned purple. The Mandalorian Clan of Ordo was superb against the raid, fending off ratios of three to one in each engagement. All of the men had armed up in seconds as most of the wives took the young children to hidden shelters below their huts. The Slaver's however just kept coming. As entire hunting parties were killed, more came. Keilbourn continued to fend off the attacks darting around for the sparse amount of cover provided inside. As he skidded to a halt behind an opening in the interior of the walls, a Mandalorian before him firing his blaster dropped dead. It was only then that Keilbourn realized that this battle's casualties were far from one sided. Again his thoughts honed in on Iella. Where was she?

"Keilbourn!" he heard over the battle. Suddenly, Cautiss slid into cover next to him. Just outside, the other four of the Ordo Aran defended the post. Cautiss' brown armor was splattered with the blood of Zygerrians just as his knives were caked by the oozing substance. "Keilbourn, Iella, where is she?" he demanded.

"No idea," Keilbourn shouted. "Haven't seen her the whole time." Keilbourn activated his com. "Sev, any eyes on Iella?" he inquired. He couldn't keep the worry from his voice. As he waited for a reply, a blaster bolt soared before his head. Cautiss popped from cover and flung a blade from his grip, impaling a Slaver in center mass.

"That's a negative," Sev replied finally. "I'll stay vigilant."

"Find her Brother," Keilbourn pleaded. In the middle of the compound, Vesu Ordo proved why he was the clan's chief. Wielding only a Vibrosword, he chopped down Zygerrians left and right, skillfully using his rotations to force his attackers to step into oncoming fire. Keilbourn offered assistance from afar, blasting down any that would outsmart his tactic. Keilbourn bounded from his cover, charging down the wall, picking shots on the hostile Slavers. Up on top of the wall, Sev scanned the battlefield. His skilled steady breathing and focus allowed him amazing control from behind his X-45 sniper blaster. His eye was fixed on spotting Iella's red armor, a color chosen also by few others of the clan. Sev's grim black armor blended perfectly with his shadowy perch. The former Commando had recreated his beloved design of red splatter marks on the armor, far less traditional than his Brother's cultural design. Sev canceled out all other distractions as he searched for Iella. What caught his eye was a flurry of quick jabs and the drops of two Zygerrians as more poured in around the warrior. Iella's slim form was defined in the fit of her armor. Sev saw her struggle over a wave of the Slavers. Before he could contact Keilbourn, a Zygerrian from behind her jabbed a shock baton directly to her shoulder blades. She dropped to her knees, and then was knocked out by three blasts of stun beams.

"Keilbourn, I found her," he announced with urgency. Sev was just about to pull the trigger on the Zygerrian Slavers, but was then disrupted. A Slaver tackled him from the side, separating him from his blaster. The two figures slammed to the floor of the battlements. Sev quickly regained focus as the beast leapt on top of him. With a clawed hand, he swiped an open palm to the side of Sev's head. His ears ringed from the blow to the point of debilitation, unable to block the incoming flurry of blows. Over the storm of attacks, he heard Keilbourn's voice.

"Where?" Sev struggled to reply.

"Eastern wall," he strained through the comms. "Hurry!" he growled. The buildup of rage boiled in him, triggering his temper and adrenaline. With a roar, he grabbed the Zygerrian around its furry neck and flung his weight. The two of them rolled over each other before toppling over the edge of the wall. The drop was far and hard; Sev slammed on his back, lying out sprawled. He recovered again as the Zygerrian charged for another attack. Quickly, he drew his pistol from its holster and squeezed off three rapid shots. The Zygerrian crumpled to the ground. Suddenly, the Zygerrians' focus switched from killing the Mandalorians, to returning to their ship. The survivors clipped cables on their harnesses which extended from the large craft hovering above the canopy. As the Zygerrians clipped back on, they returned fire from the Mandalorians' suppressive rain of blaster bolts. Before the clan knew it, the Slaver's were gone, pulled back up to the ship which took off into the rain filled sky. The compound erupted in roars and cheers of triumph. As men punched their fists together and waved their blades wildly around them, glee and pride swelled within them all. None cared over the downpour which soaked through their suits beneath the Beskar plating and turned the grass to mud. Sev too joined in, though only half heartedly. He relished in the joy of ending more of the Slavers, though Keilbourn was out there somewhere. He scanned the compound for Keilbourn. After a minute of searching and wandering, he found him, alone. He sat with his helmet off, head buried in his hands, black hair tangled in his fingers. "Keilbourn?" Sev called out. The former ARC only shook his head from in his hands.

"I, I was too late," he shuddered from behind his hands. Sev's good mood quickly dropped from a prideful glee to grief. From behind his helmet, his expression drooped into shock. From behind him, Vesu Ordo boldly strode to Sev's side, clapping him on the back.

"Well fought, Sev and you too…" his words dropped away as the Clan Chief noticed Keilbourn's slumped position. "Keilbourn?" he called out gently. With his face still buried, he squeezed his eyes shut and grit his teeth. Why? Why did have to be him to tell Vesu? Slowly, Keilbourn rose to his feet, and then stared straight into the Mandalorian's T visor on his helmet. Vesu saw the grief stricken in his stare and the grit of his teeth.

"Sir, Iella has been taken," he strained, struggling to keep his composure and strength behind his words. From behind, Cautiss approached along with the rest of the Ordo Aran. Cautiss from behind his helmet glanced about pleadingly. His ears however heard the message. The Mandalorian balled his fists and growled loudly. He quickly stepped around to face Vesu.

"Father, I will go after her," he snarled. "The Ordo Aran will bring our Sister home!" Cautiss declared with a snarl. From behind, the four Mandalorian warriors bearing the thin, blood-red band, the decoration of the Ordo Aran, pumped their fists in the air with a resounding roar. Suddenly the uproar of the surrounding Mandalorians was interrupted as the hulking figure of Arvon broke through to the center of the gathering. Draped across his shoulder was a Zygerrian, dazed yet alive. The Mandalorian craftsman tossed the Slaver to the ground. With his hands bound behind him, the Slaver kicked out with his legs. Sev watched in disgust at the Slaver. He turned to Vesu, facing away from him but closely within ear shot.

"Sir, you want to find Iella, let me handle this scum," he muttered sharply.

"Zygerrians are not easily broken my friend," Vesu replied.

"Nor was I easily trained," Sev shot back. Vesu's gaze darted from behind his helmet from the surrounding clansmen, to the disgusting Slaver which breathed heavily and snarled at his captors. His thigh had received a blaster wound and blood dripped from his crooked nose and lips. But his eyes, his eyes burned with a kind of satisfaction that sickened Vesu.

"Do what you need," Vesu answered.

Chapter 19

The rain had ceased and dawn was nearing. Utter fear and intimidation was better triggered within the dark and mysterious. Sev had learned these lessons the hard way, as Walon Vau had often taken he and his brothers in the dead of night straight from their barracks to dark unknown rooms. There were times in the midst of the brutal questioning and sessions of beatings when the Commandos of Delta Squad had even questioned still being inside the bright, white interior of Kamino's Tipoca City. Sev's experiences were brutal, abusive and extremely harsh, but through them he became a better and hardened soldier, a real nightmare to his enemies. With dawn approaching within the hour, Sev was under of window of effectiveness. Lashed to a broad tree, The Zygerrian was forced to sit on nothing but the air. With his back firmly against the trunk of the tree and legs in perfect ninety degree angles, the Slaver would be forced to either endure the painful posture or slump uncomfortably over the chords which bound him. The Zygerrian murmured in galactic basic.

"Where am I?" he growled weakly. Sev stepped into the Zygerrian's field of vision

"Hell," Sev replied menacingly. "You're mine for as long as I want." The Zygerrian only quivered slightly, though the sight was nerving. Sev nearly blended into the darkness in his black armor. No detail was discernible, leaving only a terrifying silhouette. Sev on the other hand, saw everything perfectly through his helmet's night vision function. "Your pals have taken someone, and I want her back!" Sev demanded as he got in close to the Zygerrian's face. While still exchanging glares with the Slaver, Sev took his knife and stabbed it straight into the Zygerrian's leg. The Slaver yelped in a painful roar.

"If you cry over a little prick, then you're really gonna hate what comes next," Sev snickered. He roughly pulled out the knife from the Zygerrian's leg. Blood spilled from the wound, which Sev quickly wrapped with an adhesive tape. He then brought back his fist and slammed on the Zygerrian's chest hard. The Slaver made little noise. Sev retracted chuckling darkly.

"You see I learned all of this through firsthand experience. I know the difference between what hurts, and what is excruciating," he said with another laugh. "The difference, there, my training, had boundaries." Sev leaned in close again. "Here, there are no boundaries." Sev snarled as he reached for the Zygerrian's hand which was bound to the tree and grasped the Zygerrian's forefinger. Sev needed little force to snap the finger's bone out of place. The Zygerrian cried out in agony.

"You have nine more fingers and ten toes for me to break," Sev observed menacingly. After that, I will cut them off. Then I'll begin to see the big picture. First will go your arms, then your legs. I have all the time in the world to saw through your bones and I will enjoy every agonizing moment of it. You see, you don't want me to enjoy it, cause then I won't want to stop." Sev's mental torture was working; he could see the Zygerrian's eyes change from anger to worry; not yet fear, but well on its way. "You see what I'm getting at here?" Sev asked as he leaned in closer again. "Whatever loyalty you have to your people is nowhere near worth the amount of pain you **will** feel." Sev stood back up and drew knife which he toyed with in his fingers. "I have a few simple questions. If I don't like your reply, then I will proceed to do everything I just explained to you. Willing to talk?" The Zygerrian glowered at him through fright stricken eyes.

"You can't break me," he replied with a shake in his tone.

"You asked for it," Sev said with a shrug as he reached for the Zygerrian's next finger and broke it. The bone snapped out loud but was drowned out over the Zygerrian's whelp. Sev then cascaded three blows straight to the knife wound he'd inflicted earlier. "Where'd you take her!" Sev demanded gruffly. The Zygerrian retracted as Sev shoved his face into his. The Slaver then spat onto his face plate. It then began shouting out in a different language. Sev grabbed another finger. "So I can understand it!" he demanded with a bellow. The Zygerrian looked straight back at him.

"Does not matter where she goes, you will never find her, slime." Sev rolled his eyes.

"Feirfek," he cursed as he rolled his eyes and snapped the finger in his grip. Another cry went out into the night. "You must not like these very much," he added with a laugh. The former Commando then proceeded to break the remaining two. The Zygerrian howled in pain, its eyes swelled with the fear quickly setting in. "That's an entire hand down; think you have enough to endure another?" Sev observed grimly. "Tell me where she's been taken to," he demanded. Sev stayed crouched before the whimpering Slaver, which remained uncooperative. "Fine," he growled as he slammed his fist down hard on the knife wound. As the Zygerrian groaned, blood splattered from beneath the tape. The Zygerrian writhed in pain, collapsing as far as his binds would allow him to. Sev stood up and brandished his knife. "Time to change it up a bit," he said. He approached the Zygerrian again; reaching for the Slaver's mangled hand.

"No! Please, I'll talk!" he pleaded. Sev placed the blade on the bent finger.

"You have until this blade slices through before I go for another," Sev warned. "Where is she?"

"We took her," the Zygerrian howled. Sev shook his head and allowed the blade to cut halfway through to the bone.

"Where!" he roared.

"Iotra!" the Zygerrian screamed in agony.

"What's at Iotra?" Sev demanded with the blade still touching the bone. The Zygerrian's hesitation angered him even more. Slowly, Sev rotated his wrist, scraping the bone over and over with the edge of the blade. Through his outcries of agony, the Zygerrian squeezed out his answer.

"Trading Post!" Sev pulled the blade out from the finger. He stood back up, watching as the Zygerrian breathed deeply from the sudden relief. Its ugly, rough featured face had gone soft through the drop of moral. Fear wasn't only in his eyes; it showed throughout his entire body. He trembled from it and the horror of what was next to come; he was right to.

"Sadly I have only one question left. For your sake, get it right the first time," Sev warned. "Why did you come here?"

"We were hired to," it whimpered weakly." Sev approached again, brandishing the blood-soaked knife.

"More detail," he growled.

"We were hired to attack a Mandalorian settlement here on Dxun," he answered in a shaky howl of a voice.

"Who hired you?" Sev demanded.

"Empire," he answered simply but not without effort. Sev's eyes grew in shock of realization. Sev sheathed his knife on his boot then stood back to full height. The former Commando then drew his 434 pistol and shot the Zygerrian between the eyes. The feline-like Slaver slouched over his bonds as steam rose from his head. Sev looked up to the canopy above. And saw the first spill of light. Beasts of all kinds would be roaming out and about within minutes. Sev approached the tree and unlatched the chord which bound the Zygerrian to the trunk. The body dropped over onto its stomach.

"Bon appétit fellas," he mused as he strode back to the compound.

The gathering inside Vesu's court was minimal, given the situation, consisting of the Chief himself, his wife, the Ordo Aran and the two Clones. Vesu stood beside his wife, Malaro, whom sat in a chair. Cautiss and the four others of the Ordo Aran stood just off of the center with Sev and Keilbourn observing intently from the side.

"We will go to Iotra, Cautiss said with determination. His eyes alit with furry.

"Agreed, but not all of you," Vesu said. His eyes scanned over the five, conditioned, fearless warriors. The entire Clan's security was tasked on the five of them. Though the Clan was easily guarded by the numberless warriors who populated it, the Ordo Aran offered structure. "Leave two of you here," he commanded.

"Father I'd prefer a bigger number than three," Cautiss demanded.

"Then we'll go," Keilbourn interjected. Through the entirety of the council, he'd already vowed to go but waited for either the end of the meeting to announce it or a moment such as this. "Plus the Cuy'val Dar can transport all of us," he added. Sev didn't question anything his Brother said. He too had already personally volunteered to go. Cautiss looked over at Keilbourn with a gaze that burned. After a moment of contemplating over it though, the Mandalorian softened. He and Keilbourn exchanged stares then briskly nodded to each other.

Chapter 20

The newly christened Cuy'val Dar soared through hyperspace. Since their arrival on Dxun over a month ago, Keilbourn had taken time in doing complete repairs on the Freighter. He'd fixed the breaches in the hull and coated the ship a matte black with edges of tan. Decaled white on the starboard side of cockpit's extension in Mando'a was the ship's name. Decaled on the roof of the ship was the Mandalorian skull. Sev had also suggested decaling the symbol of the Clan of Ordo, which they quickly rejected, not wanting to compromise the Clan in any way. Keilbourn had been seated in the cockpit; just barely hearing Cautiss' approach.

"We're set for Iotra," he said as he stood from the chair. Cautiss stood with his hands on his hips in the doorway of the rounded corridor. He continued to watch Keilbourn.

"I know why you volunteered," he said stiffly.

"You gonna cut my hands off?" Keilbourn mused smugly.

"Not yet," Cautiss replied. "You'll need them where we're going." Over the beeps and the hum of the engines, a silence filled the cockpit. It almost seemed like an awkward barrier had been erected between them. Keilbourn, still eyeing his comrade scoffed, shattering the silence.

"You're very protective over her," he said finally. Cautiss' gaze softened as it glanced around uncomfortably.

"My Cousin is younger than me. She and I nearly grew up together. Of course me, I wouldn't give her the time of day. Even when her Father was killed, I ignored her." Cautiss looked back up to Keilbourn with an anguished expression of guilt. "It wasn't till after her Mother died, when she was the loneliest and need someone that I woke up, began to pay attention." Keilbourn grinned as he listened. Cautiss sighed as he focused in on the former ARC. "Ever since, I've watched from a far," he added with a slight chuckle.

"From a far?" Keilbourn frowned. Cautiss' eyebrows rose as he laughed at Keilbourn.

"You've seen her fight; she'd just as soon as kill me than accept me as a bodyguard." The both of them exchanged laughs. The laughter quickly died away, followed by another block of silence. Keilbourn cleared his throat.

"I assure you I intend no harm to her," he said sincerely. His expression supported his tone.

"I know," Cautiss replied. He then turned away and proceeded down the corridor. Keilbourn followed with a quizzical grin. The main hold was lit with the glow of the navicomputer's projection. Hovering above the console was the projection of Iotra. Surrounding the projection was Sev and the other two Mandalorians of the Ordo Aran. Sev backed away from the terminal of the controls and looked about the hold at the two warriors. With his arms crossed, his gaze darted between the two of them. One was clad in blue armor and the other in red. Sev recognized the red Mandalorian as the unlucky member of the Aran whom he had subdued upon first meeting them. As no one wore their helmets onboard the ship, Sev saw their faces. Members of the Ordo Aran varied in age. The Mandalorian in red was just older than Sev, with a rugged face topped with a red bandana around his bald head. The warrior in blue was dark skinned with a face that displayed numerous scars.

"So I've never actually met you guys before," Sev said awkwardly. His gaze then darted to the Mandalorian in red. "Except for you," he added sheepishly. The Mandalorian grinned as he raised his arm to Sev who received the familiar greeting.

"Falin," he replied. Sev nodded politely then turned his attention to the other. The dark skinned Mandalorian in blue armor accepted the gesture with a grin of his own.

"Deljo," he replied. Sev grinned broadly at the both of them.

"A pleasure, both of you." Suddenly Cautiss and Keilbourn emerged into the glow of the main hold. The Mandalorians' attention was caught by the large projection of Iotra. The surface held a resemblance to the capitol of the Empire, Imperial City; at one time named Coruscaunt. Through the bio study, the team of Mandalorians studied the planet. Heavily industrialized, large portions of the planet were covered in large cities and industrial plants. Wherever the rest of the planet wasn't desert, tiny bodies of highly polluted water pockmarked about the surface. Keilbourn stepped up in front of the team, manning the controls of the console.

"Finding the Zygerrians here won't be easily done, the planet is massive."

"True," Falin said. "Even harder if they're hiding this camp in the cities." Sev shook his head.

"I don't think so. Zygerrian Slavers Guild is a huge organization," he said. Cautiss frowned at his observation.

"Then why not take the slaves to Zygerria?" he asked. "Why bring them all the way to the edge of the galaxy?" Deljo cleared his throat out and approached the projection.

"Keilbourn, zoom out of the first cluster." Keilbourn worked the controls as the others gathered around. The projection zoomed away from the planet's close up till it was no bigger than a thumbnail, located to the far left as an outlier from a large cluster of stars. "As I thought," Deljo exclaimed. "The planet of Ques and the Sisar Run," he observed, first pointing to another small star then tracing a line with his finger. "We're on the edge of Hutt territory. Once the slaves are brought to Hutt territory, they're for sale."

"Which is why they've taken them to the edge, they still have official possession," Cautiss said as the understanding was setting in. "Slavers take the slaves to this trading post to barter and trade and prepare to sell."

"So how do we go about finding this hidden market?" Sev asked. "From what I saw, Iotrans aint too friendly; another reason they aint hiding in the cities, the law there is tight."

"So we'll have to be cautious then," Keilbourn said.

"More than you know. I've dealt with Iotrans before," Deljo interjected.

"What about underground information, a few bribes here and there?" Keilbourn suggested.

"As Sev said, not friendly people," the Mandalorian in blue said dryly. Cautiss glared at the projection of the planet. Determination laced with loathing set on his face just as the glow's illumination did.

"Yeah, well neither are we."

Chapter 21

The flight from Dxun to the edge of the galaxy had stretched to around nine hours onboard the Cuy'val Dar. Keilbourn had spent much of his time seated at the helm of his beloved ship. The cockpit strangely enough was abandoned by the four other Mandalorian passengers onboard, giving him solitary time. As his eyes softly gazed out into the swirl of stars, his mind worked overtime, conjuring thoughts and memories. Few of his thoughts revolved around the relationship he shared with his brother Sev. They'd been at each other's sides now for well over a month, fighting, training and surviving. Keilbourn could easily say he trusted Sev more than any other being in the galaxy. In his mind he was able to tell himself, without a doubt, he could put his own life in Sev's hands and nothing contended that feeling. For the most part however, Keilbourn thought of Iella and when he did, emotion swelled in him. What her feelings toward him were, he struggled to define. Keilbourn was a being bred for a completely other purpose; there'd been no flash training in the complexity of love on Kamino. On the other hand, he in particular was different than most Clones in the sense of his overdeveloped compassion; which made it slightly easier for him than his grimmer companion. One thing however, was certain, he wanted above all things to bring Iella back home, safe. He knew she was no damsel in distress, but he still wanted her back. Sev, Cautiss, Deljo and Falin had all found their own ways of keeping busy. Deljo and Falin occupied themselves by either eating or taking quick naps. Cautiss took great care and precision is sharpening every one of his blades to pristine perfection. Sev had watched in amazement for the first few minutes as the Mandalorian had taken two knives from his boots, two from the back of his belt and one long serrated knife which he had strapped down on his chest. Sev however took particular interest in the fifteen thin, razor sharp throwing blades which were stored in special mechanisms in each gauntlet.

"So how does that thing work?" he'd asked with awe on his face. Cautiss grinned with pride as he lifted the brown gauntlet to Sev's reach.

"That slot there," he said, tapping the thin, coin sized slot at the edge of the gauntlet. "The blades revolve around stacked inside. All I have to do is activate it from my helmet's interface and the blade slides into my palm ready to throw in between someone's eyes."

When Keilbourn finally called out to them from the cockpit, the Freighter was nearly seconds away from leaving hyperspace. The ship shuddered ever so slightly as it left the swirling tunnel of hyperspace and jolted to real space. Not too far off, the planet laid in the field of stars. Keilbourn directed the freighter towards the Iotra, reminiscing through its likeness to a smaller, less active Coruscaunt. Wherever the grey, discordant areas of industrialized cities didn't cover the surface, patches of brown desert took over.

"So anyone have any ideas on a plan?" Sev asked gruffly. Falin scoffed as he stood up straight, leaning against the wall.

"Sev, you still got some to learn about Mandalorians." Sev frowned. "Hardly anything goes according to plan, so what's the use. I say we go in and just fly over, do a little recon," the Mandalorian suggested. Sev shrugged his shoulders, turning his attention back to the window.

"Never said no to a little recon," he grinned. Keilbourn shrugged as well before directing his ship to the planet. Contemplating about the analysis they'd organized earlier in the main hold, he directed his ship towards a patch of the brown desert. Within a matter of a few short minutes, the Cuy'val Dar had breached the atmosphere, soaring at a leisurely speed above the vast desert staying up in the air high enough to not yet cast a shadow. As the former ARC focused through the window, Sev and the rest focused on the surveillance view screen. The sun high in the orange sky burned a radiant light which flared time to time on the window.

"Any leads?" Keilbourn inquired, maneuvering the ship without breaking its course.

"Nope," Deljo blurted in annoyance.

"Wait, there," Sev exclaimed. Cautiss leaned in closer on the view screen above the empty copilot's chair. "There's some kind of activity down there," Sev explained. His well trained eyes fixed on where he saw a movement of the desert. As the ship closed in, the image became clearer.

"It's a traveler," Falin observed.

"No it's a skiff!" Keilbourn blurted. On the screen from above, they saw a large, rusty sleek boat-like repulsor-craft, shredding through the brown sand as if it were water. The wake of sand from behind threw up a huge billowing dust cloud. From what they could see, the craft had been sloppily refitted to the user's needs. In the rear of the craft, was a metal cabin like structure. From their view on the screen, they spied four beings posted on the deck of the craft manning turrets posted on the side rails and piloting the vehicle. Sev growled in his throat as he observed the skiff.

"Slavers," he roared with hate.

Cautiss too watched the screen with loathing in his gaze.

"Keilbourn get me in low," Falin requested as he turned away. "I got an idea." Sev had followed him to the main hold and listened as the Mandalorian in red detailed his plan. He reached back to check his vibrosword was still in place. The two secured their helmets back onto their heads; it was time to work. Sev held his X-45 in his hands, standing on the edge of the deck as Falin boldly stepped to the edge of the closed ramp. Sev had given the Mandalorian the frequency of the ships communications interface.

"Alright Keilbourn, let down the ramp," he said with a gruff eagerness. The mechanism whirred and the ramp lowered. Falin stabilized himself; one hand gripping the right hydraulic column, the other flexing open and closed in anticipation. Sev knelt off to the Mandalorian's left, with his sniper shouldered and ready. "Take me down," he called out from the comlink in his helmet. On cue, the Freighter descended closer to the desert ground. Falin eyed the skiff and its passengers. The ship stayed above from behind them, making use of the dust cloud as it soared in the same direction and speed as its prey. Falin waited just a bit longer before deciding the time was right. He leapt from the edge of the ramp, through the air in a fifteen foot freefall. From over the coms, he heard Sev give the order.

"Punch it Keilbourn, bring me around!" As Falin sailed through the drop, the freighter sped forward before banking sharply, facing the skiff. Sev reacted quickly, scoping in on the operator of the skiff and firing a precise bolt through the opening of the ramp. The blast struck the being in the leg. The two Mandalorians timed their attack perfectly. Just as the skiff's speed faulted, Falin landed on the deck of the skiff, crashing into a roll on the impact. He rolled up to the alarmed Slaver manning the starboard turret, slicing him down mid draw of his sword. To the Mandalorian's surprise, the craft wasn't manned by Zygerrians. Instead of the feline beasts, he faced leathery-skinned beings wearing heavy rags and bandoliers. Its face appeared like a skull with the rugged skin pulled tight against the skeleton; it was a Sanyassan. Black blood spurt from where he struck the alien onto his red armor. From above, Sev timed his jump precisely, launching off the edge just as the freighter soared over the rear of the craft. Sev landed on the hard metal cabin, clanging as he rolled too far, tumbling down to the deck. Recovering immediately, Sev seized the control of the skiff, franticly pulling on the thrusting bars, all the while keeping the wounded Sanyassan down with his boot on its throat. Dazed yet ready, the other two Sanyassans drew blaster rifles and fired away at Falin. The superbly trained warrior out-performed the beings, leaping away from their shots and closing in on them. Falin sliced clean through the Sanyassan's leg then caught the tumbling being and used it as a shield against the remaining gunner. After a stream of lazy, timid shots, Falin spun out from behind the burn marked body, lunging his Vibrosword clean into the last Slaver. By the time seeing the scrimmage was over, Sev disengaged the craft, allowing it to halt abruptly.

"Got a live one here," Sev announced. Falin ran to the control platform. Sev relieved the being of his boot, instead dragging it upright against the controls. In terror, it began to shriek and growl guttural exclamations.

"Shut it," Falin snapped. "You speak basic?"

"Little," the Sanyassan gurgled.

"I got a question for you, your reward; you don't die, fair enough?" Sev threatened. Vigorously, the being nodded its leathery, sickly head.

"Good. The Zygerrians, I know they're here. Where do they hide?" Falin demanded.

"I-uh, in desert," it finally mustered. Falin brought up his sword, brandishing its blade, lathered in the thick black blood of its comrades

"Be more specific or your blood with mix with theirs," the Mandalorian growled, thrusting the edge of the blade up against its throat. The Sanyassan shrieked in terror.

"Here, here desert!" it shrieked. "Ahead!" Sev reached to his belt with his free hand and extracted a handheld device which he laid in his gloved palm. With a tap of his thumb, the device came to life, emitting a primitive projection of a topographical map with a hundred mile radius.

"Point it out," Sev demanded. The Sanyassan gasped in panic as its four fingered hand rose and pointed to a location just to the east of the tiny location marking. Sev pulled the map away then pressed his thumb in the space where the Iotran had indicated. Falin eased slightly on the Sanyassan's throat. "Keilbourn, we got it," he said into the com. Keilbourn banked the Freighter around to return to the skiff's location. As Sev gazed up at the ship which descended yards from them, Falin flicked his wrist, slicing the blade's edge into the Sanyassan's throat. In a stream of blood it gurgled and died. Sev gave no mind; he hated Slavers more than anything else in the galaxy. Still onboard the skiff, the two Mandalorians watched as the other three clomped down the ramp and ran to the rested skiff, hovering just two feet over the ground. Cautiss clambered aboard first followed by Deljo then Keilbourn. Sev produced the hologenerator, thumbing on the device.

"There," he said after activating the map. "Right smack dab in the middle of the desert." Observing the projection, Cautiss shook his head and swore.

"Middle of the desert, we'd be spotted in an instant," he grumbled.

"Yep," Falin exclaimed before clapping his hand on Cautiss' armored shoulder. "So how's your Sanyassan?" he mused.

"You're kidding," Deljo blurted. Keilbourn grinned from behind his helmet.

"Actually, I've done some undercover work for some time," the former ARC boasted. "We've got what we need and it'd get us into the trading post without stirring some suspicion." Down near the rear, Deljo examined the large metal cabin fitted at the rear of the skiff. He quickly removed his blue Mandalorian helmet then pressed his bare ear up against the searing metal of the cabin. His eyes grew wide as he jumped down from the piloting platform to the rear deck. On the side of the cabin was a sealed metal door. He brought up his heavy, modified T-21 Repeater. The long blaster was familiar to both Sev and Keilbourn, having seen it among the ranks of the Clones in the Clone Wars. Deljo however, fitted it with a fore grip and handle on top of the barrel and replaced the stock with a thinner, shorter alternative. Heaving the large repeater up to his waist by holding the handle, Deljo pointed the blaster at the console beside the sealed door. After releasing a hail of green bolts, the console sizzled and smoked, out shorting the circuits. Deljo allowed his repeater to drop to on its sling across his chest as he gripped the jagged metal door and slid it open. The light seeped inside the hold, shining on the timid slaves inside.

"In here!" Deljo called out. Hastily, they rushed to Deljo's side. Inside was a collection of beings hugging the back wall of the metal cabin. Stout, furry Ewoks from the moon of Endor all hugged each other close, their black beady eyes watering with fright. Another group consisted of green, rough skinned Rodians, accompanied by a huddle of humans. Sev slammed his armored fist on the side of the metal cabin, which thundered in the closed area. The slaves inside retracted further in fright, nearly melting into the wall. Keilbourn dropped down to his knees, his compassion for them showed through his caring eyes as he removed his threatening helmet.

"You're okay. We're not going to hurt you," he assured them consolingly. The few humans inside relaxed slightly, though few Rodians remained defensive while the Ewok's looked at the Mandalorians with scarred confusion. The others followed Keilbourn's lead, removing their helmets and peering at the captives with kind faces. Keilbourn turned his attention to the Ewoks. Knowing none of them would speak Galactic Basic, he instead offered an open hand. The Ewok in front looked from his face to the outstretched fingers, sniffing the tips with its flat, dark nose. After a cautious moment, it reached its stubby, furry arm out and touched its tiny paw to the Mandalorians palm. He smiled to assure the creature, all was safe. He gently shifted out from the cabin, leading the Ewok into the sun. Before long, the slaves all had filed off of the skiff and onto the desert sands. Falin approached Keilbourn after he was able to peel the grateful Ewoks from his armored leg.

"Okay now what? We're just going to leave them here?" Falin asked.

"No, we can't do that, they'd die out here in this sun," Keilbourn muttered as he squinted up at the sky. His gaze then dropped to his ship, landed on the sand just feet away; there was his solution.

Chapter 22

The skiff continued down the desert, zipping through the sand. Three men stood on the deck of the craft, keeping weathered eyes over the horizon. Their bodies were covered in brown and grey rags and wrappings. No exchange of words was dealt between the beings on board. As the skiff climbed over the edge of a dune, a large flat clearing came into view through the haze of heat and the flare of the sun. In the middle of the clearing, they spotted a large wall, fortified with turrets at each corner. As the skiff approached the wall, its size grew immensely and guards became visible. The skiff slowed, coming to idle as it closed in on the large metal gate. The guards at the top of the wall trained their turrets on the skiff. The man behind the throttle of the skiff reached to his concealed b Firelancer, keeping a cautious eye on the guards above. Keilbourn didn't think it was going to work. To his surprise, the large metal gates swung open and revealed of net of lasers which dispersed. Keilbourn eased, placing his hand back to the throttle and accelerating forward slowly. They're disguise had worked. The Slavers regarded them as Sanyassans just as their wrappings suggested. Each Sanyassan on the deck wore the raged desert wear over their Beskar plates and helmets. Keilbourn keyed the comlink in his helmet.

"Everyone steady," he muttered as his gaze darted around the inside of the wall. The Slaving post was vast, appearing like a cluttered marketplace of cruelty and suffering. Falin suppressed his anger by wringing the rusted rail of the skiff's side. Cautiss observed the Slaving post even further, noting the strange guards on the walls.

"Those aren't Zygerrians on the wall," he said.

"They're Iotrans," Falin explained. "Makes sense to have highly militarized beings as hired security," the Mandalorian muttered through his com. He eyed the beings through his enhanced vision of his HUD. Their heads were bulbous and grey with flat features. Falin continued to survey the market. Though it seemed crowded and chaotically disorganized, it was hardly so. The Market area was contained in the center of the base. A loop of cleared area allowed the transit of various speeders and carrier transports which funneled into an open collection plot to the right. As he watched, Slavers forced their captives from their crafts onto the plot for collection purposes. From there, the various Slavers could either try their luck in the markets or liquidate their bounties to a Zygerrian bookie. On the other side of the market, a smaller plot was lined with freighter ships all of the same make. No other beings of authority other than Zygerrians were allowed in this area. Established into the back wall overlooking the entire operation was a large booth with a solid wall facing out over the market. As Falin looked around the booth, he spotted a collection of crates up against the wall across from the transit loop.

"Talk to me, what do you see?" Sev's gruff voice inquired over the com.

"Visual on guards all along the wall, be advised of turrets on each corner, possible hiding spot across the road up against the rear wall." As Falin detailed the base, Sev mentally pictured the entire compound.

"Break from cover at three, two," Keilbourn counted. "Now." As the skiff turned entering into the plot against the boundaries, the already damaged door to the metal cabin slid open allowing two armored Mandalorians to slip out and jump off the skiff, charging to the rear of the compound. Sev spotted the crates, jumping behind them followed by Deljo. After a moment of hiding, Deljo keyed his com.

"Think we were spotted?"

"Doubt it," Sev replied. "They'd have started shooting by now." Suddenly, the sound of an elevator hummed as it dropped from inside the tube which protruded slightly from the wall. Sev and Deljo squeezed closer into the poor collection of shadows provided by the crates. The doors slid open and two Zygerrians stepped out of the elevator onto the compound. One Zygerrian was garbed in the usual Slaver uniform while the taller one loomed above and wore an intricate uniform. The fur on his feline head was pulled back into a pony tail.

"Seems like a fine pillage," purred the uniformed Zygerrian. His cat-like eyes glanced over the plot to the right, watching Slavers collect their bounties. "The shuttle from the Dxun raid? You know we're not being paid for any prisoners." The other Zygerrian chuckled as he looked slyly to his superior.

"Thought the pretty could fetch an even prettier price," he said maliciously, licking his dark lips as he looked hungrily to the market. "That is unless you'd rather save her for other uses." The Zygerrian in charge smiled, baring his fangs then returned his attention to the Slaver beside him.

"So what am I to tell the Imperial?" he asked switching from savagery to his business-like manner.

"Call it a success," the Zygerrian said. "We killed plenty of them."

"So these unarmored ones, they are dead?" The two took off down the transit loop as they continued.

"As I said, we killed plenty of them." From behind the crates beside the elevator shaft, Sev and Deljo listened in.

"Confirmed, Iella is here," Deljo announced over the comlink.

"Roger that," Cautiss replied. "Sit tight, we're at the left edge of the market." Across the compound, the Sanyassan disguised Mandalorians casually pretended to observe the spoils of the various Slaving agencies. Keilbourn however stayed focused on the smaller plot to the left, staying vigilant for a sign of Iella. Falin leaned in closer to him as he spoke.

"There's no way we're going to find her here," he grumbled in his ear. Keilbourn nodded briskly before glancing around.

"Sev," he called out through the comlink. "Any visual on a vantage point?" the Commando only took seconds to answer.

"Actually, yeah," he replied. "Now you sit tight, we're going to go in for a closer look." From in the shadows of the crates, Sev and Deljo nodded to each other, peering from their cover.

"Clear," Sev said. He reached his arm out, activating the panel just feet within his reach. The elevator doors hissed open again, quickly, Deljo and Sev jumped from cover, and rounded into the elevator. The doors closed behind them, as the car shot from inside the tube. After a quick search, Sev found a lens on the ceiling of the car and briskly punched it. The lens shattered under his fist. "We have maybe a minute before they get curious," Sev said.

"Plenty of time," Deljo mused with a smirk. The both of them quickly stuck to the sides of the elevator, leveling their blasters. As the doors parted, the both of them poured from the car, sliding into defensive positions up against the corners of the wall. Deljo posted on the left corner, slowly brought his finger up to where his mouth would be from behind his helmet. Sev nodded to acknowledge the signal; he too heard the footsteps in the hall across from them. He brought his Scalphunter's scope up to his eye, patiently waiting. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Deljo motion with his hand. He flicked his gaze over to see Deljo indicating the door against the wall next to him. Sev nodded then slid stealthily across the wall, blaster still leveled. Deljo led the way, carefully unlocking the door. Sev stayed out in the hallway, still up against the wall, he lowered his Scalphunter, allowing it to hang across his chest and dipped down for his knife on his boot. The both of the Mandalorians coordinated their attacks, not allowing either engagement to compromise the other. Sev waited for the Zygerrian guard to approach the corner of the hallway before driving his knife into the throat of the feline creature. Almost instantaneously, Deljo mowed down the two Iotran security guards inside with quick bursts of his leveled repeater. The three aliens dropped in bloody heaps to the floor of the upper level, both encounters silent and unknown to the populous below. Sev hefted the bloody corpse over his shoulder, carrying it into the booth beside the elevator. Deljo already was poring over the security screen against the wall. As Sev let the body down with a thud, he looked out through the one-way transparisteel window. The entire compound could be observed from inside the booth; Sev even spotted the other three of their party, soliciting casually at the right hand side of the market beside the freighter lined plot. All the way across the market, Sev caught a view of the Zygerrian official inspecting the operation of his base. Sev snarled at the despicable individual; he could so easily level his blaster and pick off the Zygerrian monster's head from where he was, though he couldn't jeopardize the mission at hand.

"Sev, Sev there she is!" Deljo called out excitedly, smacking his shoulder plate to get his attention. Sev broke visual on the Zygerrian and turned to face the wall of security screens. Deljo pointed at a screen depicting the Zygerrian's collection plot to the left of the market. Sure enough, Sev saw her black hair from behind as she was being forced onto an open freighter roughly by a Zygerrian wielding a shock baton. She seemed okay, though appeared to stumble weakly.

"Keilbourn we have visual on the package," Sev jeered over the com."

"Where?" both Cautiss and Keilbourn demanded.

"She's been forced onto a freighter." Keilbourn looked away from the market and turned to the plot to the left. Slaves were being funneled onto the plot by Zygerrians.

"Regroup at the plot; we're boarding one of those ships."

Chapter 23

Keilbourn, Cautiss and Falin briskly made their way to the very edge of the market's boundaries. They remained inconspicuous and extremely vigilant of the guards, all the while keeping ready hands close to their weapons. Their disguise as Sanyassans had lasted their stay, though the longer they found themselves in the Slave market, they more they wanted to leave the awful place. Cautiss and Keilbourn were anxious in retrieving Iella.

"Sev tell me," Keilbourn muttered sincerely over a private com channel. "Is she alright?"

"She's fine," Sev answered just as serious as his Brother. "She seemed weak and wasn't wearing her armor, but she's fine." Keilbourn stealthily led Falin and Cautiss across the transit lane to the rear of the small plot. Within seconds, Sev and Deljo arrived. The plot was separated from the rest of the compound by a flimsy fence, containing the transit of slaves and rows of freighters. The Freighters was familiar to Keilbourn as he'd before seen them throughout the Clone Wars. The Aurore-class Freighter was nearly twice the size as his own ship. The bulky body of the ship was flanked by stubby, flat wings tipped with large boosters. The wings were rotated, allowing it to rest on the boosters with its cargo doors open. Each of these freighters was being filled with the slaves, processed, purchased, and ready for sale to the Hutts.

"Falin get us through this fence," Keilbourn ordered.

"With pleasure," he grinned as he drew his vibrosword from his back. The other Mandalorians circled around him, alert and wary.

"What about security?" Cautiss inquired with his blaster pistol in one hand and a throwing blade already in the other.

"We took care of that," Sev grinned. After three swift swipes with his sword, a hole was made in the fence. He and Keilbourn pried it open allowing the other three Mandalorians through. They crept up to the flat inclined stern of the rusted starship. Security inside the plot seemed minimal though easily alerted. The freighter was at the end of the line and was nearly finished loading in slaves. Keilbourn and Cautiss knew this had to be swift, or it would never work. The both of them crept to the rear of the ship, staying as discrete as possible, the others snuck from behind. The single Zygerrian overlooking the loading of the slaves was busy looking down at a data tablet while the other aggressively shepherded them inside; he would be a challenge. As the final slave was loaded, they heard their cue.

"That's the last one," the Zygerrian with the data tablet announced into a mouthpiece. Mandalorians made their move. Cautiss rushed out first, driving a throwing blade into the Zygerrian's throat. As it gurgled through its severed windpipe, drenched in blood, the second Zygerrian gasped in shock, but was then silenced with a slash of his own throat by Keilbourn. The Mandalorians made no hesitation, quickly dragging the bodies into the freighter. Sev, Deljo and Falin quickly followed, filing over the short ramp into the hold of the ship. The ramp then slid into place as the nose of the ship slid down into place. The inside of the Freighter was dark, making it hard for the captives inside to see. As the freighter whirred to life and began its ascent, a quiet murmur lofted in the air with different dialects carrying questioning words from within the cargo hold. Though some were frightened by the five figures that had stormed in with dead Zygerrians, others were anxious and curious. The Mandalorians stayed close to the front, apprehensive for the doors to open again. They, unlike the slaves, could see perfectly through the adjusted function of their helmet's HUD. Keilbourn, Falin and Cautiss proceeded to remove the wrappings from over their plates, after this point, they had no choice but to openly engage the Slavers and find Iella.

"While we were hiding in the market we overheard how this all works," Keilbourn said as he removed the wrappings of his disguise. "These Freighters are all boarding on a carrier which will transport each of these to Hutt territory."

"That's going to take us through Hyperspace," Deljo observed.

"Feir fek, so we got a window," stated Sev.

"And it aint long," Keilbourn added gravely. "After boarding we'll have maybe ten minutes to find Iella and then find a way off." Before they knew it, the inertia of the ship slowed as it idled; they were approaching the carrier. From inside, no view could be seen, though they prepared anyway, feeling the behavior of the ship and judging its procedures. Sev and Falin waited off to the left of the hatch, with Keilbourn and Cautiss to the right. Deljo chuckled with glee and anticipation as he hefted his modified T-21 repeater to his waist. Each of the warriors posted on the sides had weapons drawn and ready.

"Everyone put up a ten minute countdown on your HUDs," Cautiss suggested. The Mandalorians navigated their HUD displays then waited. The ship stopped completely and shook slightly from the landing. "Mark," Cautiss muttered. At once and on cue, they began the countdown. Seconds later, the darkness of the hold was eaten away by the light as the hatch rose. The Zygerrian had no time to even blink before being mowed down by a spray of Deljo's heavy repeater. The loud rattle of the repeater, caught the attention of every Zygerrian inside the vast, open hanger bay. The other four Mandalorians poured from the freighter, blasters blazing as bolts sailed across the hanger to precise targets. Eight of the Freighters were docked aboard the open hanger. Both the starboard and port walls of the hanger were red shields allowing the freighters to enter.

"Careful with the civilians onboard," Keilbourn called out over the comlink.

"Roger that, keep your eye out for Iella," Cautiss growled as he sent a blade into the chest of a Zygerrian. The open hanger was crowded by slaves in a panic and Zygerrians, furious by the breach in their security. Keilbourn looked over the heads of the entire hanger, straining to spot any sign of Iella. Sev covered him, picking off Zygerrians with ease and holding them back. Deljo had resorted to leveling his repeater up to his shoulder, afraid to gun down an innocent civilian. As they assumed defensive positions for their attacks, Keilbourn keyed his comlink.

"We're not going to make any progress staying here," he stated. "Cautiss take Sev Deljo and Falin with you and make your way down through the far side, Sev and I'll take care of this one."

"Roger," Falin answered. The three of the Ordo Aran maneuvered down the across the hanger to the other side, taking cover at the nose of the front Aurore-class Freighter. Together, Sev and Keilbourn charged down the hanger to the far side. Occasionally taking cover, they hunkered down to engage the Slavers. Growls and roars erupted throughout the hanger as the savage Slavers fought against the Mandalorians. Though overwhelmingly outnumbered, the warriors all bested the Slavers. Parallel to Sev and Keilbourn, Falin rounded a corner of a freighter. Instinctively, he swung his Vibroblade at a Zygerrian. The Slaver dodged the attack then swung its claw, smacking the side of his head. Dazed, Falin stumbled though shook his head clear. Cautiss then replied, tossing a throwing blade which delved into the Zygerrian. Together, the Mandalorians took off, plowing through the Zygerrians. In shock, the slaves had either dropped to the floor, keeping their heads low, or clamber back into the ships. Zygerrians at the far end of the hanger however, continued as if nothing was happening. It was then that Keilbourn spotted Iella. Her head bobbed as she drifted on her feet, stumbling every now and then as she was herded through the door at the far end.

"Package spotted!" Keilbourn exclaimed, losing focus of what was happening around him; his mind was focused on Iella. Sev yanked him out of the path of sailing green blaster bolts and into cover.

"Where?" the replies rang from multiple voices over the com.

"Through the door ahead of us," Keilbourn answered. Nothing else mattered now, not even the vicious Zygerrians; nothing could trump his determination. Keilbourn took off, Firelancer in his grip though not leveled. Sev rolled his eyes as he lagged behind, firing off at Zygerrians who attempted to kill his Brother.

"Feir fek Keilbourn, get a hold of yourself," Sev barked. Keilbourn ignored all around him, finally reaching the far wall. Zygerrians charged at him, which he dealt with, wielding his knife. Within the minute, the remaining Mandalorians approached the wall, gunning down the Zygerrians. With a thankful nod, Keilbourn led the charge through the door, blaster leveled and cautious. The halls were dim, emitting a red glow inside. One by one, the Mandalorians followed inside, filing cautiously down the hall. Keilbourn at point held his Firelancer up to his shoulder, sweeping the halls as he stalked.

"Be advised timer is at six minutes and counting," Falin announced worriedly. Following the path of the hall, they made a turn around a corner, continuing down a stretch of hallway before coming arriving at an incline in the corridor. Keilbourn planted himself tight against the wall as he stalked up the incline, followed by the rest. Before they knew it, the corridor opened into an opening which branched off into two different halls. Between the two entries was a turbolift's doors were sealed shut in the empty hall. As they emerged into the opening, the warriors dispersed about, searching for any sign.

"Three possible routes and five of us," Sev observed. "It's obvious what we gotta do," he said looking to each of them.

"Roger," Cautiss barked, jumping to his feet and rambling off with haste. "Sev, Keilbourn, down the left."

"We're on it," Keilbourn shot, taking off with Sev at his heels.

"Deljo, up the lift," Cautiss commanded with a motion to the turbolift.

"It's mine," he replied as he bounded to the doors, activating the elevator.

"Falin, you and me, we're taking right." Falin nodded, following Cautiss down the right hallway. They trod down the hall, disregarding their need of stealth. Cautiss led them down the halls. Coming to another bend in the passage, he yielded, planting himself up against the wall and scanning the passage way with his blaster pistol. After peeking around the corner, he decided the way was clear. Breaking from the cover of the corner, he continued down the dim halls. Suddenly, the doors ahead of them opened, allowing Zygerrians out into the halls, carelessly unleashing a hail of blaster fire. Cautiss swore as he fired away with his blaster pistol, backing up to the corner for as much cover as he could muster. Falin too waited around the corner. It took only seconds for Cautiss to realize they were stuck. The Slavers numbers were too great for him to handle head on and going back wasn't an option either, where they could compromise Sev and Keilbourn.

The lift's doors parted with a hiss and Deljo peeked around the corner only to nearly get his head shot off. Quickly dodging back inside the open car, he inched closer to the walls taking a deep breath before making his move. Amidst the volume of green blaster bolts sailing his way, he stepped out into the open fire, letting loose a barrage of blaster fire from his heavy repeater. The blaster rattled from his waist as he unleashed a devastating wave of blaster fire, suppressing his opponents. Deljo stepped out of the lift and into a looped passage which encircled the lift. He backed away taking cover from the out cropping in the hallway structure. The Zygerrians regained their wits again, snarling as they fired back at him.

"Want more huh!" Deljo shouted before stepping back out and releasing another hail of blaster fire from his repeater. The blaster marks scorched the walls wildly from the immense volume of his repeater. His boldness cost him though. A lucky Zygerrian fired a burst of blaster fire which hit the Mandalorian in his side. Deljo grunted as he doubled from the wound and dropped back in his cover. Wincing and swearing from the blaster wound, he looked about the hall, catching sight of a layout of the ship. Despite the extreme size of the starship, it was rather minimal. The entire ship's space was mainly dedicated to its vast, single hanger bay with only two distinct levels throughout the vessel. Deljo was on the top level, the spine of the vessel, which housed the command bridge and the escape pod terminal. "That'll come in handy," the Mandalorian thought. He then proceeded to observe the remainder of the layout. Below on the first level, from where the team had split up, there were only two points of interest. He found that the fork split to the holding cells to the left and the security post to the right. "Oh feir fek!" he exclaimed he then tried to raise Cautiss or Falin on the comlink, but was greeted only by static. Another burst of blaster fire came from down the hall, reminding Deljo of his current predicament. He pressed down on his wounded side, before making his next move.

Chapter 24

Sev and Keilbourn forgot all technique of caution and subtlety, seeing the time on their displays tick away. Their path to the left led them to a door sealed shut. Keilbourn approached it, observing briefly the panel off to the side.

"Could you hack it?" Sev asked.

"Take too damn long," Keilbourn grunted as he reached back into his belt. He extracted a demo charge from a pouch and placed the magnetic seal onto the metal door.

"You know as soon as that thing blows, we're gonna have the entire ship after us," Sev chided as he kept watch with his Scalphunter leveled.

"We already do, Brother," Keilbourn replied as he finished the sequencing. "Charge set, clear!" he called out, spinning up against the wall as Sev charged up to it. After a count of three seconds, the charge went off, with an explosion that licked their armor. Sev felt the heat from it, feeling the wall shake from the blast. A large man sized hole resided from where the charge had been placed. Before entering, Sev reached back, tossing in a smoke grenade. The entire room before them filled with dense, billowing white smoke. Green blaster fire streaked to the door way as the dazed Zygerrians took pot shots. Professionally, Sev and Keilbourn spun inside, blasters leveled and able to see through the smoke just fine. The room was a control room of some kind with panels installed in the center. Similar to the security booth back at the Slaving Post, the entire wall off to the right was covered in surveillance screens while a passage branched down to the left. The Mandalorians took trained shots, shooting down their opponents with ease. Wails and cries came from the Zygerrians as they fell by the hands of the skilled warriors. As the smoke began to clear the final Slaver continued firing before slamming his clawed hand onto a panel. From the break of cover, Sev sniped him down with a single shot to the head. Suddenly the passage to the left was cut off by a shimmering projection of a ray shield. Where the smoldering hole of what the door used to be was, another shield flickered as if unsure whether or not to stay in place.

"Clear," Sev barked as he scanned the left hand side of the room.

"Clear," Keilbourn blurted mindlessly. Sev turned to find him observing the wall of screens. "Sev we're at the holding cells," he said, his eyes vigorously scanning the screens. "There!" he exclaimed pointing to a screen. Sev looked and saw from an overview, the young Mandalorian woman lying on the floor of the cramped, empty cell. Stripped of her armor he saw she was barefoot, wearing a tight sleeveless top and the under suit legs of her Mandalorian dressing.

"She's unconscious," Sev observed. Keilbourn rushed to blocked entry way to the cells.

"Feir fek!" he swore as he pounded on the ray shield with his fist. "Could you override the controls?" he asked.

"With time yes, but in our case," Sev said gruffly as he approached the terminal. "Besides we're going to have Slavers on us very soon," he stated. Keilbourn slammed his fist on the ray shield again before gasping.

"I got it!" he exclaimed. He reached for another demo charge, stretching to place it on the frame above the shield.

"That could work," Sev mused. Keilbourn rushed to sequence this one, focusing all his attention on the device.

"What's our status?" Sev checked his HUD.

"Four-forty and counting," he grumbled. Keilbourn winced at the news. He took seconds more to finish the sequencing. These explosives were not like the palm sized breach charges they were used to during the War, these were full sized demolitions which he sequenced for minimal damage.

"Charge is set," Keilbourn announced, leaping away from the frame with Sev already up against the right wall. Two seconds passed before the explosion went off and the metal frame crumbled, destroying the shield emitters. The block was gone, replaced with few chunks of debris which Keilbourn leapt over easily, running down the hall, blaster pistol in hand.

"Cell Alpha-14," Sev barked into the comlink.

"Roger," Keilbourn answered, anxiousness setting in. He skidded to a halt at the end of the passage. There were only fifteen cells, as Slaves that the Zygerrians wished to keep for themselves were held on board while the merchandise was contained in the hanger bay. Keilbourn thumbed the panel to the second to last cell, anxiety fully over taking him as the door hissed upwards. There inside the cramped blank cell, sprawled on her stomach on the cold floor, was Iella. Her black hair cascaded down her face, but he knew it was her. Keilbourn dropped to his knees, gently lifting her into his arms. As her head flopped back, her eyelids rolled open and her striking eyes were dulled by a glossed over gaze. She moaned quietly as her head slowly turned to look at him. "Hey, it's me. Iella it's me," Keilbourn said. The feeling was strange, seeing her so helpless. Finally her lips slowly moved as she struggled to form words.

"K-K-"

"Don't worry, we're getting you out of here," he said, struggling to muster strength behind his words. He gingerly secured a grip on her, cradling her in his arms. As he rose from the cold, metal ground, her head rested on his armored shoulder. Her condition worried him beyond any other feeling he'd ever been subject to. Cradling her still, he took off down the passage way, back to the control room. Sev waited, blaster drawn at the damaged frame of the door.

"Three-Fifty seven, we gotta move!" Sev called out. The moment Keilbourn stepped out into the control room, the atmosphere around them erupted. Red lights flashed violently and an alarm blared. From the ceiling a double barreled turret lowered, firing straight at Keilbourn and Iella, still dazed in his arms. Keilbourn dipped back into the passage as Sev rolled out of the cross fire. He expected to lure the turret away but was surprised to find that the moment Keilbourn retreated into the passage, the turret ceased to fire. Quickly, Sev aimed and fired a quick burst at the turret. The turret exploded and Keilbourn cautiously stepped another foot out into the control room.

"That was bizarre," Sev said as he approached him. "How's she?"

"Alive," Keilbourn said solemnly with relief. Sev gazed at the cradled Mandalorian woman, frowning suddenly from behind his helmet. He stepped in closer to observe the back of her neck. "What?" Keilbourn asked warily. Sev pushed aside her black hair, seeing a small, metal square. With his fingers, he pried it off of her skin, tiny trickles of blood dripped from the four holes left by the stabilizing pins. Observing the circuitry work on the other side, Sev identified the peculiar object.

"Tracking patch, probably what set off the alarms," he suggested, still wary over the blaring sound that echoed throughout the entire vessel, no doubt attracting more vicious Zygerrians. Carefully and swiftly, Sev slipped through the flickering shield first then retrieved Iella from Keilbourn as he climbed through.

"Package retrieved," Keilbourn announced over the comlink. "En route back to rally point."

Chapter 25

Cautiss' relief was unfathomable. With Iella safe again, all that remained was getting off this Starship. After receiving Keilbourn's status, he and Falin had decided to fall back to the turbolift. The junction however gave little to no cover against the attacking Zygerrians. The alarm which continued to blare, accompanied by the flashing red lights had made them jump from surprise, a steady themselves for the worse. The two Mandalorians hugged the walls, making the best of the hallways outcropping frame as they could. Cautiss summoned his final throwing blade then sent it sailing through the air. The Zygerrian ducked then charged at the Mandalorian. Cautiss quickly drew for his blaster pistol, though despite his great speed, the Zygerrian knocked him down. Tackling him, the Zygerrian drew a deranged blade, reaching back to drive it. The Slaver then wheeled back as his hand was sliced off and the blade with it. Falin grabbed the crippled Zygerrian by the fur on its ferocious head then drove his Vibrosword clean through. Another two Zygerrians charged at the occupied Mandalorians. Cautiss still on his back leveled his blaster pistol, without firing, the Zygerrians were struck down. Sev emerged from around the corner, Scalphunter leveled. He fired a full burst down the right hallway, allowing Cautiss to recover. Back on his feet, he and Falin kept to the wall, contributing when they could while staying out of Sev's crossfire. Cautiss' expression softened as he saw Iella's limp form in Keilbourn's arms. Although his face was covered, he could sense a certain protectiveness the Clone had for her; not unlike his own yet to a different level.

"Status is Two-Thirty five and counting," Sev growled. "Someone call Deljo down so we can get back to the hanger," he said as he ducked into cover from the Zygerrian's lethal blaster fire.

"We've tried, nothing but static," Cautiss replied.

"I'll go get him," Falin called out, sprinting from cover to the doors of the lift. He quickly pressed the controls to open the doors but they would not open. "It's not working," he grunted. Suddenly he was forced to drop to the floor, avoiding a barrage of blaster fire. The hall leading back to the hanger was suddenly filled with a full platoon of Zygerrians. Howling and baring their fangs, they fired their blasters at him. Sev turned his attention to the newly arrived enemies, trying to suppress them from Falin. Falin quickly dived and ducked his way to the opposite wall, abandoning the turbolift. The Zygerrians pushed up the incline, rapidly closing in on the Mandalorians. With Falin pinned down and Keilbourn occupied with Iella, Cautiss and Sev struggled to suppress the Zygerrian Slavers from both directions. Suddenly the turbolifts door opened, and a rapid, devastating stream of blaster fire rattled in the air. The Zygerrian pushing up the incline in the hall opposite from the lift dropped dead from the sweep of blaster bolts or backed to improvised cover. Deljo stepped out of the lift then directed his heavy repeater down the right hall.

"Everyone to lift now!" he barked out loud over the rattle of his repeater. Without hesitation, Falin and Keilbourn, ran into the open lift. Cautiss followed close behind while Sev covered them before breaking from his own cover. Still firing his repeater, Deljo backed into the lift. Cautiss hit the panel inside, closing the door and sending them to the top level. Collectively, the warriors all sighed in relief, resting on the walls of the cramped turbolift.

"You're hit," Sev pointed out to Deljo with a smack on the shoulder. The Mandalorian in blue armor shrugged.

"I'm fine," he said simply.

"What are we doing?" Cautiss snapped as soon as he caught his breath. "Our way out is back down there!"

"There's a better way," Deljo replied. After a moment of staring down his superior, the Mandalorian looked over to Iella cradled by Keilbourn.

"How is she?" he asked with concern; she still was unresponsive.

"She's good but we need to get off this thing," Keilbourn said.

"We're down to One-Twenty and counting," Sev grumbled.

"Cutting it close," Falin scoffed. The Lift doors opened again revealing the next hallway. The air was illuminated with the dreary, dim red glow though the walls were covered by blast marks. In some places, the metal of the wall had small holes from where multiple blaster bolts had impacted. Deljo stepped out first, followed by Cautiss, Keilbourn then the remaining two Mandalorians. Deljo led them straight down the hall before them, through a simple weaving hallway. As they entered the corridor, they passed a collection of dead Zygerrians, peppered by numeral blasts; the kind of damage inflicted by a spray from a heavy repeater. They made their way down the hall without any opposition.

"So what's your brilliant plan, Deljo?" Cautiss called out sarcastically. Finally they reached the end of the hall to a sealed hatch.

"Escape pods," Deljo said simply. The wide hatch was sealed tight and he struggled to find a way through it. The panel to the side was locked by a security override.

"Chizk, used my last charge in the holding cells," Keilbourn swore.

"Only a Zygerrian handprint can override the lock," Deljo explained through grit teeth. Falin stepped up to the door.

"Well there's that or," he said as he drew his Vibrosword then stuck it into the panel shattering the glass face. The wreckage of wires in the wall smoked and sparked violently. The door out circuited and unsealed itself. Falin withdrew the sword and sheathed it on his back again then with his outstretched hands, gripped the metal clasps of the hatch. Cautiss too helped to manually slide the door open. As seconds ticked away, they slowly widened the opening. Once large enough to squeeze through, Cautiss slipped inside then beckoned for Iella. Mid transfer, Keilbourn froze, straining to listen.

"Oh feir fek, Slavers," he declared. Sev and Deljo spun on the spot, leveling blasters down the hall. Sev's acute hearing too heard the clamber of footfalls on the metal floors of the ship. With Iella in Cautiss' arms, he rushed to the closest circular hatch. Keilbourn squeezed through next, running up to his comrade. "Forget the minute to Hyperspace, we got seconds before the bridge overrides the escape pods," he called out. From behind the half open hatch, blaster fire rang down the halls. Falin slipped through next followed by Sev. As Sev crouched to the side of the opening and Deljo squeezed through, the Zygerrian's green blaster bolts sailed down the hall, impacting on the metal slates of the hatch. Cautiss had already opened the circular hatch into the tube like craft. He laid Iella on one of the six seats up in the front of the pod as he sequenced the launch. Keilbourn stepped inside and Falin entered too, securing himself in one of the heavily padded seats. The interior lights of the pod came to life as Sev and Deljo dove inside. Falin pulled down the circular hatch behind them sealing themselves inside.

"We're good!" Falin called out. Cautiss flicked the final switch. An explosion erupted from both behind and in front as the clasp released them and the hatch blew open. From outside of the pod, thrusters extended from the hull of the pod throwing them away from the Slaver's carrier. Taking a deep breath, Keilbourn removed his helmet, sinking deeper into the heavy padding of the seat. In front of him, Iella was slumped with her head back and eyes closed. He stared at her worriedly, wishing above all things for her eyes to open, her posture to straighten and to move in general. Cautiss crouched, gazing out from the window in the front of the pod, a single wide ring of transparency which was filled by Iotra. The space around them shook and echoed with a bang as the vast starship behind them had made its jump to Hyperspace. In the back of the pod, seated beside each other on Keilbourn's left, Falin and Deljo exchanged laughs and praised themselves. Sev on the other hand, sat across from them in the rear of the pod, keeping to himself. Though Iella was safe and they were at the close of their mission, Sev felt incomplete and inwardly mourned for the hundreds of beings with futures of slavery in the Hutt Territories and the thousands more back on Iotra. He battled himself, trying to embrace their success though feeling guilt. He wished he could do more; and he would when the opportunity struck.

Chapter 25

Her beautiful emerald eyes finally eased opened. Her thin lips parted as she drew in a breath from the circulated air of Cuy'val Dar's life support. Iella awoke with not much memory from before her heavy sedation. Only flashes of images came through the haze of sleep like a dream after having woken. Her home was attacked in the midst of a heavy downpour late in the night. She was dragged from a ship into blazing hot sun. Somewhere, a battle echoed behind her. She vaguely remembered the helmet of a Mandalorian, distinctly Keilbourn's design. Up until the point of her awaking in the medical bay of the Cuy'val Dar, was nothing. Slowly, she eased into a sitting position on the bed. Looking about herself, she wondered where her armor had gone and about the tube protruding from her upper arm. As she reached to remove it, the circular door opened and Keilbourn walked in, wearing only half of his Beskar armor. The sleeves of his under suit were rolled up as he'd embraced the opportunity to finally relax.

"Don't do that," he warned with a smile that refused to suppress. Iella, still slightly dizzy, only frowned her reply. "The Zygerrians dosed you with a compound that paralyzed you. It took some tries but Falin finally synthesized an anti-compound. Guess they just didn't want to mess with you," Keilbourn added with a grin as he seated himself at the edge of the bed. Iella laughed then recovered, struggling over her words from the lack of use.

"M-my armor?" Keilbourn frowned.

"Long gone. We found you like this at the Slaving Post. I'm sure Arvon can replace it." Iella glowered at the ceiling cursing the Zygerrians in her mind. "How are you feeling?" Keilbourn asked gently. Her attention snapped back to him with a softer expression.

"Better," she replied with a nod. "Pissed off but better." Keilbourn laughed which after a few moments of trying to hold it back, Iella joined in with a fit of giggles. "Where are we?" she finally asked.

"Well currently your cousin is at the bridge of my ship, hopefully keeping her intact. Deljo and Falin are no doubt in the middle of some game of brawn while my brother Sev is probably taking a nap." Iella wasn't quite sure how to digest the answer. There were many she'd like to see aboard the ship, yet she felt unsatisfied with the answer. "But to really answer your question," Keilbourn continued then paused. "Actually, do you feel well enough to walk?" Iella scowled at his stupid question, she wasn't crippled. She swung her legs around the edge of the bed then shoved off with her arms. Her legs however felt like jelly and gave out the moment her weight was shifted to them. Keilbourn reached out and grabbed her. He raised his eyebrows in a mocking manner. Iella rolled her eyes before grinning slightly. Her eyes then made contact with his own; weary and strong yet, soft, deep and brown. Though his were the eyes of a warrior, tenderness was about them. He helped her straighten to her feet, holding her hand all the while as she slowly let strength run to her legs again. Keilbourn could barely contain his cool manner which he displayed at the time, though managed by clearing his throat and stepping aside for her to exit the medical bay. The cold of space intensified from the metal floors of the ship. Only after a few steps, her bare feet adjusted and she walked down the hall just fine. Keilbourn led her down the circular passage then turned right, through a hatch and into the garage opposite the cargo hold. The rather empty area was well lit and the blankets and pillows from the freighter's dormitories were given to the refugees sheltered in the ship. Iella covered her mouth as she looked about taking in the sight of the collection of Ewoks, Rodians and humans. After having commandeered the Sanyassan's skiff, Keilbourn offered shelter inside the garage, blocking off the rest of the ship by ray shields though kept the main ramp open for them to come and go as they pleased. A bald man with a short grey beard rose from his cross legged position and approached Keilbourn.

"Noble man, we will never forget these deeds," he said with strength in his voice contradictory from his small stature. His tears swelled as they watered. Keilbourn placed a hand on his scrawny shoulder and gently shook it.

"It is our honor," Keilbourn assured him with a grin on his grizzled face. "We only wish we could have done more for those back at the post. Please, is there anything I can do to make your travel more comfortable?" he asked.

"We are just fine here," the man said looking to the refugees. Iella watched them in amazement. She couldn't exactly relate her experience with them as she was unconscious the entire time. By just imagining the terror they faced, she couldn't believe how joyful the beings all were. They intermingled with each other; she especially enjoyed watching a young Ewok play with and entertaining a little girl. Her gaze carried from them to the Mandalorian beside her. Witnessing his absolute care towards those that needed it impressed her. She never questioned Keilbourn's kindness, though seeing its application firsthand, she adored it. After bidding goodbyes and informing the Rodians their stop was merely half an hour away, Keilbourn led a rather, quiet and pondering Iella back through the corridor and up the hall to the main hold. Upon her entering the area, Deljo dropped his Sabaac hand and rushed, picking her up in an embrace.

"Good to have you back, kid!" he laughed. As she touched back to the cold floors, she shoved him away with a grin on her face, playfully detesting the nickname. Falin rushed over then motioned with open arms. They embraced before parting. Having heard the commotion from the cockpit, Cautiss bounded down the hall. He rushed and embraced her tight.

"I'm sorry," Cautiss whispered under his breath, holding her tight.

"Why's that?" she replied with a frown. Cautiss retracted, still holding her shoulders. With a shake of his head, he shrugged away his answer.

"Never mind." Keilbourn glanced over to the blonde haired Mandalorian, knowing exactly what he meant. Keilbourn then looked about the gathering, a frown setting on his face.

"Where's Sev?" Cautiss cocked his head back down the hallway to the cockpit.

"Back down there," he said, the joy of having his cousin back still brightened his tone. Keilbourn departed down the passage to through the circular entry into the boxy cockpit. Sev sat behind the copilot's chair, thoughtfully looking out at the swirl of Hyperspace.

"Hey, Iella's awake," he announced. Sev turned back and nodded with a weak grin on his face.

"Oh good, I knew she'd be fine," he said assuredly. Sev then looked back through the window.

"Thank you, Sev," he mumbled. Sev looked back at him with a furrowed brow.

"What do you mean?"

"For everything you did, for helping."

"Of course I helped," Sev scoffed. "I had to make sure you kept your helmet on straight," he grinned. Keilbourn laughed in nodding his head in reply. "Anyway," Sev yawned as he dug deeper into the chair. "I'm just anxious to finish this drop off then go back home."

"Yep, back to the job hunt," Keilbourn mused. Sev's relaxed, joyful grin disappeared.

"Keilbourn, I'm just as ready to get started on that course, but we got to be careful."

"Well of course," he said then paused. "How do you mean?" Sev sighed shaking his head as if ashamed.

"It's our fault Dxun was raided in the first place. The Empire sent the Zygerrians after us," he explained with a painful bitterness in his tone. "I'm telling you right now, I refuse to do any job for the Empire," Sev declared, accenting his words with brisk hand motions.

"Agreed," Keilbourn nodded. "Try to stay off their radar as much as we can," he said. He looked away then pondered for a moment longer smirking as a thought bloomed in his mind. "You what we're describing is less bounty hunter and more freedom fighter."

"Sev looked to Keilbourn then back out at the mass swirl of stars going by at unfathomable speed.

"Maybe that's what this galaxy needs. Someone with no affiliation, moral, yet will get the job done. Not held down by politics, not held down by diplomacy, not held down by," he stopped in search of the right word. "Not held back by fear," Sev finished looking back to his companion who listened intently; a steady gaze as he took in Sev's every word. "They trained us to be unstoppable. They trained us to be a nightmare to our enemies. We will become their nightmare." Sev's eyes burned with the fearsome fire of his words. To Keilbourn, it was inspiring. The both of them would never forget this day, as it was the moment since a month ago in a cantina on Contruum, they finally had purpose again; they were whole.


End file.
